A Change Of Heart
by RozaBelikova-x
Summary: Abe Mazur is a millionaire and a protective father. His daughter, Rose, wants freedom and plans to make a trip without her father's bodyguards. Abe hires Dimitri Belikov to travel around Europe with Rose, but she can't know Dimitri is her bodyguard. She thinks he's her friend. What will happen when Dimitri starts to develop feelings for Rose along the way? Full summary inside. AH.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, my dear readers! I'm back with a new story. Here's the full summary:**

_**Abe Mazur is a well-known millionaire and a very protective father. He wants his daughter, Rose, to be safe and protected at all times. But Rose wants to be free and plans to make a trip without her father's bodyguards. Abe disagrees and hires Dimitri Belikov to travel around Europe with Rose. But Rose can't know Dimitri is her bodyguard. She thinks it's a coincidence that they met and that he's just being her friend. What will happen when Dimitri starts to develop feelings for Rose along the way? And how long will he be able to keep his true identity a secret? **_

**I hope you enjoy the first chapter ;)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 1**

**DPOV**

_What the fuck am I doing here?_ That was the first thought that entered my mind when I drove my car up the very long driveway and parked in front of the house – if you could call it that.

It looked more like a mansion to me. There was even a freaking fountain in the center of the driveway. And before you could even get here, you had to announce yourself at the intercom installed at the huge iron gate. I guess when you had a lot of money, you had to take precautions.

I walked up the stairs and was about to ring the bell, but the door opened before I could. They must've installed cameras at the front door, too.

An elderly woman opened the door and gave me a friendly smile. "Good morning, Sir. Are you here to see Mr. Mazur?"

"Yes," I responded. I thought I'd already said that at the intercom?

She stepped aside and motioned for me to come inside. "I'll bring you to his office," she said.

I nodded and followed her. I assumed she was the housekeeper. Someone as rich as Abe Mazur must have a housekeeper, right? We went up the staircase and through a few hallways until she suddenly stopped at a door.

"Here we are," she said, giving me a polite smile before leaving.

Taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door. There was a rustle inside the office and then a deep voice said, "Come in."

I opened the door and walked in, closing the door behind me. Mr. Mazur was seated at his desk, smiling broadly at me. I had to keep the surprise off of my face as I took in his clothing. He was wearing a gray striped suit and a _very_ flashy scarf, which was weird since it was summer. But I shouldn't be one to judge since I was always wearing my leather duster.

"You must be Dimitri Belikov," Mr. Mazur said as he got up. I nodded and shook his hand. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"Likewise, Mr. Mazur," I said.

"Please, take a seat," he said. "Would you like something to drink?"

"No, thank you," I said politely as I sat down across from him.

"Well, let's get down to business, then," he said. "You know why I called you, right?"

"Umm, because you need a bodyguard?" I said. Otherwise I had no idea what I was doing here.

"Yes, but not just any bodyguard," he said. "I need the best of the best. And someone told me that you are the best."

I shifted in my seat, uncomfortable. "I don't know who told you that, but I'm afraid that-"

"Come, come, don't be so modest," Mr. Mazur interrupted me. "I took a look at your resume. It's very impressive. You've protected a lot of important people."

"I guess," I said. I wondered again who had recommended me to Mr. Mazur. He wouldn't tell me on the phone. Maybe he would now. "How did you find me anyway?" I asked, hoping it didn't sound too rude.

He grinned. "I've got my resources." Clearing his throat, he leaned forward and folded his hands together on the desk. "Anyway, back to business. I need you to protect my daughter."

"Your daughter?"

"Yes." He sighed and looked at a framed picture on his desk. I couldn't see the picture, but I assumed it was one of his daughter. "Her name is Rosemarie. She's got this crazy idea in her head, that she wants to see the world and experience it. I don't think there's anything wrong with that, but she's young – only eighteen years old. I don't want her to be out in the world on her own so I tried to convince her to take two of my personal bodyguards with her – to protect her, in case it's needed – but she refuses to listen. She's just as stubborn as her mother. She was also always-"

He cut himself off abruptly and averted his eyes, looking sad all of a sudden. Something must've happened to his wife. Maybe a divorce? Or maybe she'd died? I didn't dare to ask. I didn't want to invade his privacy. It wasn't any of my business.

Clearing his throat again, he continued, "Anyway, she's set to do this on her own. She doesn't want protection. And she threatened that if I dared to send someone after her to keep an eye on her she wouldn't come back." He sighed. "I guess it's my own fault. I kept her close to me for years, never letting her leave this place without some sort of protection, and the only thing she wants right now is to get out. She wants freedom."

"Why didn't you give it to her sooner?" I asked hesitantly. "Why did you keep her here?"

"Because I don't want anything to happen to my daughter," he responded.

"I understand that, but everyone needs a little space," I said. "I can imagine she doesn't like to be around bodyguards twenty-four hours a day."

"I know, but it's for her own good," he said curtly.

I frowned and he sighed again.

"Look, a couple of years ago, my wife was murdered. For money and some jewels..." He shook his head slightly and the sad look appeared on his face again. "My daughter witnessed it all. When I got home and saw...saw what had happened, I found Rose hiding in the closet, crying." He averted his eyes again, his voice shaking. "That was the worst day of my life."

I stared at him, not knowing what to say. There wasn't anything I could say to make him feel better. "I'm sorry for your loss," I said at last.

"Thank you," he said quietly. "The safety of my daughter became my priority. I make a lot of money – there's no denying in that – so I knew it was possible it could happen again and that my daughter could get hurt in the process. I was so paranoid that I thought someone might kidnap her and demand a ransom. So I pulled her out of school, figuring homeschooling was better for her. We moved out of our house and moved in here. I hired bodyguards to protect us both and since then I've never let her leave this place without protection. I knew she needed her freedom, but I thought it was for the best." He let out another sigh. "Now she's an adult, she can do what she wants and she wants nothing more than to see the world. Despite what Rose has said, I can't let her leave on her own. I need to know that she's safe."

I'd almost forgotten why I was here, but now I realized what he wanted from me. "You…you want me to go with her?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yes," he said.

I frowned. "But you just said she doesn't want any bodyguards to come with her."

"I know. You can't tell her you're a bodyguard."

"Then what am I going to say? Don't you think she's going to find it weird if a stranger comes with her? Without some sort of explanation? Or do you want me to trail her?"

"No, I need you to be with her at all times."

I didn't see how I was going to do that without her knowing that I was her bodyguard. "How long will this trip take?"

"Two months," Mr. Mazur answered.

I stared at him in shock. Two months? I was going to have to spend two months with a teenager?

"She leaves next week," he continued. "You have to befriend her before then and make sure you can go with her without raising any suspicions."

"With all due respect, Sir, but I don't see how that is going to work," I said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, make it work. I don't care how you do it. Just get the job done."

I shifted in my seat again. How in the hell was I going to do this? It was madness. But…the pay was good. More than good. We'd already discussed it over the phone and when he'd told me what he'd pay me for the job – I hadn't known back then what exactly I was going to be hired for – my interest had been piqued immediately.

"Can you get the job done?" Mr. Mazur asked when I didn't say anything.

_Think about your family. They need your support. _

"Yes," I said swiftly. I still had a week to figure out how I was going to do this. I was sure I'd find something good by then. "Yes, I can do this."

He smiled. "Great. It's settled then." He reached into one of the drawers of his desk and handed me a picture. "This is Rose, the girl you're going to have to protect with your life," he said.

I'd only meant to glance at the picture, but as soon as I looked at it, I couldn't drag my eyes away – even if I'd wanted to. Rose was very beautiful. She had long dark brown hair, framing her pretty face. Her eyes were also a dark brown color and she had the same skin tone as her father.

Mr. Mazur cleared his throat and I realized I'd been staring at the picture for too long and quickly looked up.

"You can keep that picture, by the way," he said. I nodded and tucked the picture away in my pocket. "And remember, you can't tell her anything," he added. "If she figures out the truth…"

"Yes, I know. I can't tell her anything about my job," I said. "And if she asks, I'll make something up."

"Good. Rose will be at a club with her friend tonight," he said, not seeming too happy about it, "so if you want to see what you're going to have to deal with, you should go there."

What you're going to have to deal with? What was that supposed to mean?

"Okay," I said. "What's the club's name?"

After another ten minutes, we wrapped up the conversation. On my way out, I thought about everything he'd said. I wondered if this was a good idea after all. Well, it was too late now. I'd already said yes to the offer. There was no backing down now.

**RPOV**

"Hey Alberta!" I said, catching up with our housekeeper as she walked through the hallway with the laundry basket in her hands. "Is he here yet? I heard the doorbell."

"Yes, dear. He's waiting for you in the kitchen," she responded smiling.

"Okay, thank you!" I said before turning around an walking into the other direction.

"You look lovely, by the way," Alberta called after me.

I grinned at her and then made my way downstairs. I entered the kitchen and saw my best friend – and only friend – leaning against the counter, munching on a cookie.

"You're eating my cookies!" I said, outraged.

Startled, Christian looked up at me and then grinned. "I was hungry. Sorry."

"You don't look like you're sorry," I said, narrowing my eyes at him.

"Hey, I'm taking you out. I think I'm allowed to have a cookie, then," he shot back.

"Fair enough," I said reluctantly. "Just one, though."

He rolled his eyes at me. I grabbed the bag from him and put it on the kitchen table. I turned back around to him and grinned.

"So what do you think of the dress? Do I look okay?"

He arched an eyebrow. "I think you're going to have a cold tomorrow if that's all you're wearing tonight."

I frowned. "We'll be at the club. Besides, I have a jacket for when we go outside."

"Fine then. You look great," he said smiling.

"Thanks! You don't look so bad yourself," I grinned. Christian was wearing dark jeans and a blue button-down shirt that matched his eyes. "But you could use a haircut, though," I added.

He blew his dark hair out of his eyes. "You think so?"

I nodded. "Yeah, you're lucky your girlfriend can't see you."

"She's not my girlfriend," he said with a frown.

"_Yet_," I said teasingly. "How's it going anyway? When are you finally going to meet her?"

Just like me, Christian was kind of a loner. The difference, though, was that Christian just didn't like to interact with other people besides me. I couldn't interact with other people because of my dad. So this was a very rare occasion that we were going out tonight.

Even though Christian didn't like to talk to people, he didn't mind to talk to them on the internet. That's how he'd met Lissa. They've been mailing each other for almost a year now and he can't stop talking about her. I'd told him he should just tell the girl how he feels about her, but he thinks it's going to scare her away since they've never even really met. Now, Christian was trying to find a way to meet up with her – which was hard since she lived in England.

"I don't know. I just can't up and leave like you're going to do," he said scowling.

"I need this, Chris," I said. "You know I do. I can't go anywhere without Dad's bodyguards and I'm tired of it. I need some space."

He looked down. "Yeah, I know it's hard for you. I understand why you want to leave." He looked back up at me and gave me a small smile. "Just make sure you come back, you know."

I gave him a reassuring smile. "Of course I will, Chris. It's only for two months."

"Two months is a pretty long time," he said. "I-"

He was cut off when the door opened and my dad walked in, smiling. Mikhail and Stan, his personal bodyguards followed suit. Mikhail gave me a polite smile, which I returned, and Stan looked just as impassive as always.

"You look stunning, Rosemarie," Dad said. He looked at Christian and nodded politely. "Good evening, Christian. "

"Good evening, Mr. Mazur," Christian said.

"We were just about to head out," I said, grabbing Christian's hand and dragging him to the door. "Don't wait up."

"Rose, wait-"

I stopped and turned back around. "What? Don't tell me you're going to send _them _with me!" I said, glancing at Mikhail and Stan. "You promised I could go alone, Dad. I don't need a babysitter." I quickly looked back at Mikhail. "No offense."

He smiled. "None taken."

"Don't worry, Rose. They're not going with you," Dad said.

"Oh," I said, a little embarrassed by my outburst. "Well, we should go. Goodnight."

I hugged my father, waved at Mikhail and then dragged Christian out of the kitchen. When we were seated in his car, he turned to me. "You ready?"

I grinned, barely able to contain my excitement. "Ready."

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**So... What do you guys think? Should I continue this story? Please let me know what you think ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for all the reviews, follows and favorites! I can't believe I got such a huge response for a first chapter! Thank you! :D**

**Like some people have already guessed, this story is based on the movie Chasing Liberty. It won't be completely the same, though. If you like to watch a good chickflick movie, you should check it out ;)**

**RozaNessa: I can't PM you so I'm going to reply here. Thank you so much. I'm glad you liked it! And I'm from Belgium, too ;D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 2**

**DPOV**

When I arrived at the club, I immediately made my way to the bar. I sat down on one of the stools, ordered a drink and waited. If Mazur was right and his daughter would show up here tonight, she would have to pass the bar at least once if she wanted to have a drink.

In the meantime I scanned the crowd, hoping I'd find her and see what I 'was going to have to deal with', as Mr. Mazur had put it, for the next two months.

After almost an hour of waiting, I was about to give up and go home. Not just because I was bored, but three women had already come up to me, trying to get me on the dance floor with them. I had to flee to the bathroom to get rid of them. Thank God they'd disappeared when I'd come back ten minutes later.

Just when I was about to leave, I saw her. Rose. She was sitting at a table with a black-haired boy. They were talking animatedly. I figured he was the friend Mazur had been talking about.

Leaning against the bar, I looked at Rose. The picture hadn't done her any justice. She was even more beautiful in real life. Her hair was down, just like in the picture. She was wearing a strapless black dress. It clung to her body, showing off her curves. It kind of surprised me her father had allowed her to wear this since he's so protective of her.

I realized I was staring at her and quickly averted my eyes before she or her friend would notice. After a few more minutes, they got up and made their way to the dance floor. I watched them dance together. The boy was a little uncertain, but Rose grabbed his hands and placed them on her waist as she swayed her hips to the beat of the music. The boy said something to her and she laughed. I didn't know why, but I felt a pang of jealousy. I wondered what the boy could've said that had made her laugh. It lit up her face, making her even more beautiful.

_What are you doing, Dimitri? Stop it. Stop thinking things like that._

Suddenly, Rose's friend turned and looked right at me. Shit. He'd caught me looking at her. Maybe he thought I was some kind of creep, checking out his girl. I looked away and took a sip of my drink. When I looked up again, I almost choked on my drink. Rose was walking towards me in quick strides. I prayed she was just going to the bar for a drink. But no, she was still coming right towards me.

I looked away again and breathed out a sigh in relief when she turned to the bar and ordered a drink for her and her friend. I felt her eyes on me as she waited for her drinks.

"Hey," she said, over the music.

Fuck. She was talking to me. "Hey," I said, clearing my throat.

"Are you here alone?" she asked. Her voice was just as beautiful as she was. "You've been sitting here for quite a while."

Oh God. Had she seen me watching her all along? How was that possible? I'd never even seen her look in my direction!

"No, I came with a friend," I lied. "He's somewhere on the dance floor."

"Why aren't you?" she asked.

"I don't like to dance." At least that wasn't a lie.

"What's your name?"

"Dimitri," I said, trying to appear casual. "What's your name?"

"Rose."

"That's a beautiful name," I said lamely.

"Thanks," she said smiling. "I like your accent. Where are you from – if you don't mind me asking."

I was a little surprised by this, but answered anyway. "I'm from Russia."

"Really?" she said, sounding interested. "Did you move here or are you on a holiday?"

"Umm…"

"Oh, I don't mean to be intrusive. I'm sorry."

"You aren't," I said quickly. I racked my brain, trying to come up with something good. "I…umm… I'm a freelance photographer." What the fuck did I just say?

"That's cool," she said. The bar tender gave her her drinks and I'd expected she'd leave, but she stayed where she was and continued our conversation. "Are you working on any projects?"

I took another sip of my drink to stall. "Yes," I said at last. "I have to take pictures of all the big cities over the world. Including New York."

If she would ask me any details of what exactly in the big cities I had to take pictures of, I was a dead man. I had no clue what I would say then. Architecture maybe? But I didn't know much about that...

"Ah, so you're here for your project," she said.

I nodded and she smiled. Her smile was really beautiful. I could stare at her all night. _Snap out of it, Dimitri._

I averted my eyes and downed the rest of my drink. Rose was about to say something, but then she stopped mid-sentence and looked at something behind me.

"Oh my God!" she said, looking furious all of a sudden. "I can't believe this."

I turned around to see what she was looking at when I noticed two guys standing near us, dressed in black. They looked like deers caught in headlights. Just then, Rose's friend appeared behind her and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Are you okay, Rose?" he asked, a worried look on his face.

"No," she said, clenching her jaw. "Look who's here."

The boy looked up and then sighed. "He'll never learn," he muttered.

Rose looked back at me. "I'm sorry, Dimitri, but I have to go. It was nice meeting you."

"You too, Roza," I said, giving her a small smile.

She looked like she was going to say something else, but then shook her head and made her way to the guys. I guess they were Abe's bodyguards. He'd probably sent them after her to keep an eye on her in the club. And boy, did she look pissed about that.

I noticed they were pretty young too. They couldn't be much older than Rose. And they certainly didn't look older as Rose yelled at them for following her to the club, like they were naughty children. Especially the red-haired guy looked like a chastised child.

Rose shook her head at them and then stormed away, her friend following her hastily. The two bodyguards looked at each other briefly and then hurried after them.

I finally understood why Mazur said I should see what I was going to have to deal with for the next two months. Rose was certainly not someone I wanted to piss off.

Well, now that she'd left, I didn't need to be here anymore. I could finally go home and get some rest. Sighing, I put my glass back down on the bar and made my way toward the exit.

**RPOV**

Without knocking, I stormed into my father's office. Christian, Eddie and Mason followed suit. My father looked up in surprise when he saw the four of us in his office.

"Rose," he said, standing up. "What-"

"You promised!" I said angrily. "You said I could go with Christian. _Alone._ But then I see those two dipshits-" I pointed at Eddie and Mason "-in the club watching me!"

"I'm sorry, Rose," Dad said. "It's for your own safety."

"But I _am_ safe!" I said, exasperated. "I'm with Christian. He can protect me too, you know. And the club is full of people. Nothing's going to happen to me there."

"You never know what could happen, Rose," he said sternly. "You're still young and-"

"I'm eighteen, Dad!" I interrupted him.

Christian took a step closer to me and put his hand on my shoulder. "Calm down, Rose," he said quietly.

I nodded and took a deep breath, looking back at my father. "You can't protect me forever."

"Yes, I can," he countered.

"But I don't want you to. I want to take care of myself," I said stubbornly.

He sighed. "Rose…"

"You broke your promise," I said, crossing my arms.

"I'm sorry," he said, giving me an apologetic look.

"How do I know you won't do it again?" I asked.

"I'm just worried about you," he said, walking around his desk. He stopped in front of me and took my hands in his. "You're my daughter and I want to protect you."

"I know. You keep telling me that, but I need to learn how to be independent," I said. "If you keep doing things like this, I'll never learn. I'm not your little girl anymore."

I let go of his hand and turned around. Eddie and Mason stood near the door and they quickly stepped away to let me through.

"I'm sorry I called you dipshits," I said. "I was angry."

Eddie tried to hide his smile as he said, "It's fine, Rose."

Mason gave me a small smile before looking down again. I sighed and walked past them. Christian followed me, closing the door behind me.

"Are you okay, Rose?" he asked hesitantly.

I shrugged. "I'm fine."

"You don't look fine to me. In fact, you still look mad," he noted.

"That's because I _am_ still mad," I answered curtly.

"At Eddie and Mason?"

"No, of course not. They're just doing their jobs," I said, opening the door to my room. "It's just my dad. Why doesn't he get I want to be free? Even if it is just for a few hours."

"You'll be free for two months soon," Christian said as he sat down on my desk chair.

I snorted. "Yeah, right. I bet he's going to send Mikhail or Eddie with me. Or maybe he'll let them follow me in the hopes I won't notice them."

"Is it so bad if they come with you?" he asked. "To be honest, I can understand why your father is so worried. I wouldn't like it either if my daughter was going to travel to foreign countries _on her own_."

I frowned. "You're supposed to be on my side!"

"I'm just saying that I can understand where he's coming from," Christian said. "But I understand you, too. Abe's been smothering for years and you want to get out. I get that. But I think it's a little dangerous to go all alone."

"But I want to go alone. I don't want someone with me who tells me what I should and shouldn't do," I said. "And I will never be able to feel really free if he sends the guards with me so…" I walked to my closet and opened the doors. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave now."

Christian shot up from the chair, alarmed. "What?"

"I'm leaving tonight," I said firmly as I started to take out my clothes and threw them on my bed. I was lucky I hadn't bought my ticket yet. "Dad thinks I'm leaving next week. If I leave now, he won't notice until tomorrow morning and then I'll already be on the plane. It'll be too late to send Mikhail – or whoever he has in mind – after me."

"You're not even sure he's going to send someone with you!"

"I know my father," I muttered. "He won't let me go alone – even though he promised." His promises didn't mean anything. He'd proven that tonight. "I'm leaving tonight and you can't stop me."

"And how exactly are you going to leave?" Christian asked, arching an eyebrow. "You don't own a car."

I bit my lip. "Well… You could drive me to the airport?"

"No, I can't-"

"Please, Christian," I said, looking at him pleadingly.

"I don't want to anger your father."

"He doesn't need to know you helped me escape."

"Escape?" Christian said. "You make it sound like he's keeping you imprisoned here."

"It might as well be!"

He crossed his arms and gave me a defiant look.

"Come on, Christian!" I pleaded. "You've got to help me. You're the only one who _can_ help me."

He didn't say anything so I kept begging for his help until he sighed and held up his hands in defeat. "Fine! I'll help you," he gave in. I grinned and opened my arms to hug him, but then he added, "On one condition."

I dropped my arms. "What condition?"

"You call me immediately if something's wrong," he said, "so I can come and bring you home – if that's needed."

"Okay," I said quickly.

"I mean it, Rose. And I want you to call me at least once a week to tell me you're fine."

"Christian-"

He shook his head at me. "It's under these conditions or you won't be going anywhere tonight. It's your choice."

"Fine," I growled.

"Okay, then I'll help you escape," he said, looking satisfied.

"Thank you!" I said grinning. "Now you can help me packing."

When we were ready and about to leave, there was a knock on the door. I looked over at Christian, who put my suitcase back down.

"Rose, I know you're in here. Please open the door." I recognized that voice. It was Mason. "I need to talk to you."

"Shit! Hide the suitcase," I whispered to Christian.

But before he could do so, the door opened and Mason walked in. Christian and I quickly moved in front of my suitcase, hoping Mason wouldn't notice it. His cheeks flushed red when he noticed Christian was also present.

"Oh, I didn't know you had company," he mumbled. "I – I just wanted to apologize, you know. I know you don't like us following you around, but…" He bit his lip. "Well, I'm sorry. I didn't want to ruin your night."

"You didn't," I said quickly, hoping he'd leave. "It's not your fault, Mase. You were just doing your job."

"So you're not angry at me?" he asked, hopeful.

"Of course not," I said, giving him a small smile.

He smiled, relieved, and looked down at me in awe. I wish he didn't. My dad had hired him two years ago and from the very first day he'd taken a liking to me. At first, I thought it was just a crush, but he was still giving me the same look after two years.

At last, his gaze shifted and a frown appeared on his face. "What's the suitcase for?" he asked.

I bit my lip. "Umm…"

Then it dawned on him. "You're leaving?" he said, incredulous.

"Mason," I started.

"What about your father?" he said. "You weren't going to tell him, were you?"

"No," I said honestly. "I wasn't. And you know why."

"Rose," he said earnestly, "you can't do that to him."

"I don't have a choice," I said. I turned back to Christian. "Let's go, Chris."

"I can't believe you're helping her with this!" Mason said to Christian.

"She's my friend," Christian simply said.

"I'm going to have to tell your father," Mason said warningly as he followed us out.

"Please don't, Mase," I begged him. "You can't do this to me."

He looked hesitant and I grabbed his hand. I knew I shouldn't, but all I could think about right now is to get out of here without my father finding out.

"Please, Mason," I whispered. "Please do this for me."

He looked torn. "He's my boss, Rose."

"_Please_."

"I suppose I could give you a head start," he said at last.

I realized this was all I would get and it was better than nothing. I hugged him and whispered in his ear, "Thank you, Mase."

I let go of him and then walked with Christian to his car, dragging my suitcase along. Mason followed us and I used the opportunity to ask him one more favor.

"Will you please distract Eddie and the rest of the guys?" I asked. "So they won't look at the camera's and see me leave."

He sighed. "Fine."

I thanked him and was about to get into the car when he suddenly pulled me back. I gave him a questioning look.

"Please be careful," he said softly.

"Of course," I said, giving him a reassuring smile.

He let go of me and let me get inside the car. Before closing the door, he said, "Bye Rose. Have a nice trip."

Christian started the car.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked as he drove toward the gate.

"Yes," I said quickly before I could start to feel guilty for leaving my father like this. "Just get me out of here."

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**So, Dimitri has met Rose and now she is leaving. Will Abe find out in time? If he does, will he let Dimitri know? Please leave a review and let me know what you think of the chapter ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	3. Chapter 3

**Thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 3**

**DPOV**

I groaned inwardly when I heard my phone ring. It was already past midnight and I'd just gotten into bed. I hoped that whoever was calling me at this hour had a very good reason to.

Sighing, I reached for my phone on my nightstand and put it against my ear without even looking at the caller ID.

"What?" I said gruffly.

"What took you so long, Belikov!"

I sat up, suddenly wide awake, when I recognized that voice. "Mr. Mazur! Why are you calling me? Is there something wrong with Rose?"

"Yes, she left!" he said frantically. "She packed her things and has gone to the airport! You have to get to the airport right now."

I frowned and glanced at the clock. "But-"

"Don't ask any questions. Just go there," he cut me off. "She's going to Paris so make sure you are on the next flight to Paris."

I scrambled to my feet and started putting on my clothes. "When is the next flight to Paris?"

"In one hour."

I stopped dead in my tracks. In one hour? How was I going to pack my bags, make it to the airport and buy a ticket to Paris in one hour?

"Belikov, are you still there?" Mr. Mazur barked.

"Yes." I started dumping clothes into my duffel bag, not even looking at what I was packing. "How are you so sure she's going to Paris?"

"Because that's her first stop," he said. "I found a piece of paper in her room with all the places she wants to see. Paris is on top of the list."

"Alright, alright," I said. "I've got to go. Otherwise I'll never make it in time."

"About that," he said slowly. "Someone will pick you up at your place in ten minutes. Make sure you're ready by then."

What?!

"Call me if something goes wrong," he said curtly before hanging up.

"Great," I muttered. "Absolutely wonderful."

I cursed myself for taking on this job as I ran to the bathroom and stuffed everything I thought I'd need in my bag. Exactly ten minutes later, there was a car parked outside my apartment building. I grabbed my duffel bag and went outside.

There was a man leaning against the car and opened the door for me. "Good evening, Sir."

I just nodded at him and got in. He closed my door and then walked to the driver's side. As he started the car, I looked out the window at my apartment building, hoping I had everything with me. I wouldn't be here again for another two months.

Glancing at the clock, I realized I would never make it in time – no matter how fast we drove. And even if I made it, there might not even be a spot for me on the plane. Then I'd have to take the next flight.

But how was I ever going to find Rose in Paris? I had no clue to where she would go in Paris. Not even her father knew where she'd be staying. How was I supposed to find her then? This was an impossible job and I couldn't believe how stupid I'd been to say yes.

Suddenly, my phone started ringing again and I hastily answered it. "Yes?"

"Rose won't take the next flight to Paris," Mr. Mazur said.

I was confused. "But – but you said she's at the airport?"

"Yes, she is, but _you_ aren't and I know you won't make it in time," he said, "so I can't let her get on that plane. I called the airport manager – he's an old friend of mine – and he made sure she won't get on the plane." I'd already thought Abe Mazur was powerful, but I'd never thought he'd be this powerful. "She bought a ticket for the next flight to Paris – it's at eight in the morning. Make sure you're on that flight."

"Okay." When he'd hung up, I put my phone away and sighed. Turning to the driver, I said, "You can slow down now."

The driver smiled. "Has the boss taken care of it?"

I shrugged. "I guess so." I glanced at him and asked, "so you're his personal driver or what?"

"No. I'm his bodyguard, but I offered to drive you," he responded. "My name is Mikhail, by the way."

"I'm Dimitri," I said, introducing myself quickly before changing the subject to something more important. "So… Do you know Rose?"

His response was curt. "Yes."

_Great. Now I know a lot more._ "Um, what's she like?" I asked.

She'd seemed nice at the club, but this man must have known her for a longer time so he probably knew what kind of person she was.

"She's kind and caring," Mikhail responded softly. That sounded good. "But-" He glanced at me and gave me a pointed look "-she's also stubborn and tough. And she has a temper." I groaned inwardly. "Let me give you some advice," he continued. I nodded and listened intently to what he had to say. "Don't start a fight with her if you don't have to. Don't tell her what to do and…don't steal her food."

"Steal her food?" I said, confused. Why would I do that?

"That's very important. She'll get mad if you so much as touch her food without her permission," Mikhail said, giving me an earnest look.

"Okay. I'll stay clear of her food," I said, raising my eyebrows.

"She's not easy, but once you get to know her," Mikhail said with a smile, "you'll realize she's a wonderful person."

After that he didn't say anything anymore and I looked out the window again, thinking back to his words. The closer we got to the airport, the more I started to dread I'd said yes to this job.

How was I going to spend two months with Rose without making her suspicious? How was I going to become friends with her and make her trust me enough so I could go with her on her trip? If she had wanted someone to come along, wouldn't she have asked one of her friends? Then why would she want me, a stranger, to come along with her? That was just insane.

And still, I had to do it. I might fail, but the least I could do was try. If I succeeded, Mazur wouldn't have to worry, Rose would enjoy her trip without her father's bodyguards trailing behind her and I would get my money.

"Don't worry, Dimitri. It'll be alright," Mikhail said, interrupting my thoughts.

I looked at him and nodded. _Let's hope so._

**RPOV**

"Are you sure you don't want me to wait?" Christian asked for the tenth time.

"No, I'll be fine," I said, a little annoyed. I'd been repeating myself for five minutes now. "Don't-"

"I can bring you to a motel or-"

"No, Christian," I interrupted him. "It's only six hours. I'll wait here."

"But how are you going to sleep?" he asked frowning.

"I'll sleep later, on the plane," I said, waving away his worries. He looked at me, doubtful, and I sighed. "You should go home, Christian. You look tired."

"Fine then," he said reluctantly. "But if you need something – anything – just call me. If you want to come back home, call me and I'll come and get you."

"I'll be fine. Really," I said, giving him a small smile. "You don't' have to worry about me. Worry about Lissa and how you're going to tell her you're in love with her."

Christian glared at me. "That's not something I want to discuss right now."

"Whatever. Just go home and get some sleep," I said, hugging him. "Thank you for driving me here."

"You're welcome," he murmured, tightening his arms around me. At last, he let go and smiled. "Have a nice trip, Rose."

I smiled back. "Thanks. I'll see you in two months."

He gave me a small wave and then turned around to leave the airport.

I didn't know what to do the next few hours so I went to the food court. By the time I was back at the terminal, an hour had passed. Sighing, I sat down in one of the chairs and tried to get comfy. I didn't know if I should get some sleep, because there were just a few people here. What if they'd leave and I'd wake up all alone? What if someone came up to me and tried to steal my money or something like that? Maybe I shouldn't go to sleep.

Now I had nothing to do but wait, I started thinking about my father again and how he'd feel when he found my bed empty the next morning – if Mason hadn't told him already, of course.

But if he did know, I was surprised he hadn't called me yet. Could it be that Mason hadn't told him after all? It didn't matter. My dad would find out soon anyway and when he did…

I bit my lip as the guilt started to seep in_. Don't think about it. Think about something else. About your trip._ I started fantasizing about all the things I'd get to do the next few weeks. Maybe I'd meet some handsome guy and fall in love. I'd never fallen in love before. I'd never even had a crush before. The only men I knew in my life were my father, Christian and the bodyguards. They were all like family to me.

Yes, falling in love was definitely one of the things I wanted to cross off my list.

**DPOV**

As I approached the terminal, I saw a few people sitting in the chairs. One of them was Rose. She was sitting a couple of seats away from the other people, staring down at her lap. She looked like she was deep in thought.

I wasn't sure if I should go over or stay here and wait until… Until when? I had to talk to her at some point if I wanted to become friends with her.

As I tried to figure out how I was going to handle this, a man walked up to her and asked her something, holding up his hand. She looked taken aback and shook her head at him. He then reached for her purse and Rose pulled it away quickly. She shot up from her seat and backed up. She glanced at the couple in the other seats, but they were fast asleep.

Without thinking, I strode forward and tapped the man's shoulder. "Is everything alright here?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Rose looked up at me and her eyes widened in recognition. The man turned around and scowled before walking away, muttering. Rose let out a sigh of relief.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She turned to me and smiled. "Yes. Thank you."

I smiled back whilst trying to come up with something to say. But it turned out I didn't need to.

"You're Dimitri, right? From the club?" she said hesitantly. "I recognize you, but I wasn't… I mean, I'm not sure if you recognize me."

"Yes, I do recognize you, Rose," I said still smiling. "It's hard to forget a face like that." She gave me a weird look and I realized what I'd said. Oh God… Had I really just said that out loud? I flushed and stammered, "I don't mean that as an insult. I – I meant, you're beautiful." I groaned inwardly. What the hell was I doing? I should've just kept my mouth shut. _Great way to start a friendship_, I thought sarcastically. "I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable," I mumbled.

To my surprise, she laughed. "No, it's fine." She sobered up, but her smile stayed on her face. "Thank you. And not just for the compliment," she added. She glanced at the man who was leaning against the far wall now. "Thank you for saving me from that man."

"No problem," I said, relieved I hadn't angered or upset her. "What was he asking for?"

"Money," she answered frowning.

"Well, it's not really safe to sleep alone in an airport," I said. "Aren't your friends around – or family maybe?"

I already knew the answer to that question, but if I didn't want to raise any suspicions I had to ask the questions normal people would ask.

"Umm, no," she said, biting her lip. "I'm alone."

"Well, you shouldn't be. It's not safe to be alone here at night – especially for a woman," I responded.

She raised her eyebrows. "You don't think I can take care of myself?" she said indignantly.

"No, no," I said quickly, remembering what Mikhail had told me. "It's not that, but it's just…" I nodded my head toward the man leaning against the wall. "Guys like him aren't likely to give up if you're alone. They're pretty persistent. It's better if you stay close to other travelers at night." I wondered how he'd gotten through security anyway.

She frowned. "Oh. I didn't know that." She smiled nervously. "I don't travel a lot."

"If you want," I said hesitantly, "I'll stay with you tonight so the man doesn't bother you again. I've got to stay here anyway and wait for my flight."

"You're going to Paris, too?"

"Um, yeah. Why else would I be standing at this terminal?" I said teasingly.

"Oh. Right. That was stupid of me," she mumbled. She sat back down in her seat and looked up at me. "Well, if you don't mind…" she said, looking a little bit embarrassed.

I smiled and sat down next to her. "I don't."

To my surprise, she blushed. We sat in silence for a while and I wondered if I should try to keep the conversation going or if I should wait until she'd say something. Luckily, Rose made the decision for me.

"Are you going to Paris for your project?" she asked.

I looked at her in confusion. My project? Then I remembered what I'd told her earlier tonight. "Oh – yes. Paris is my next stop."

"Why did you come to the airport at this hour?" she asked frowning. "Why not wait until tomorrow?"

"I could ask you the same question," I responded, raising an eyebrow.

"I just had to get away from home," she mumbled. Clearing her throat, she asked, "What other cities are you going to visit? For your project, I mean."

"Um, I don't know yet. They said I could choose as long as I made something beautiful of it," I lied smoothly.

"Wow. Your job sounds really wonderful," she said, impressed.

_It's more like a pain in the ass right now._ "Yes, I suppose it is," I said instead. "And you? Why are you going to Paris?"

She looked away and shrugged. "I don't know. I've always wanted to go to Paris."

"How long will you be staying?"

"I don't know that either," she said sheepishly. "I… I'm actually going to visit a lot of cities. It's sort of a trip around the world – well, more like Europe, really. I want to see all the big cities and learn about all the different cultures. I want to explore the world."

I tried to sound incredulous as I said, "On your own?"

"Yes, I want to learn how to be independent," she said. "I know you probably think it's irresponsible or-"

"I think it's courageous," I interrupted her gently.

She looked up at me, surprised. "Really?"

"Yes," I responded smiling. "But also a little…dangerous."

"I'll manage," she said shrugging.

"Are you sure about that?" I said, arching an eyebrow as I glanced back at the man who'd been begging her for money.

"Hey, that is something entirely different," she exclaimed. "I just didn't know how to – I was just…" She groaned, frustrated, and muttered, "Never mind."

I chuckled and she smiled reluctantly.

"Maybe you should get some sleep," I suggested when she leaned back against her chair and yawned. "I'll keep watch."

She glanced at me, hesitant. "You won't rob me in my sleep?" she said, only half joking.

"I won't. I promise," I said with a crooked smile.

"Are you sure? Don't you want to get some sleep, too?"

"No, I'm fine. I'm not that tired," I lied. In truth, I was exhausted, but I guess I could get some sleep when we were on the plane. I got up from my chair, shrugged off my duster and handed it to her. "You can use this as a blanket if you want."

"That's very kind of you, Dimitri," she said smiling. She took my duster from me and draped it around her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," I said softly.

She made herself comfortable in her chair and closed her eyes, falling asleep almost instantly. I watched her sleep for a few moments as I thought back to Mikhail's words. He'd said that she's kind, but also that she has a temper and isn't that easy. That might be true, but at least she wasn't a spoiled brat – like I'd feared at first.

Having talked to her, she didn't seem all that bad. In fact, she seemed pretty interesting and was different from her peers – in a good way. I guess I was lucky. I could've ended up with someone much worse to spend the next few weeks with.

* * *

**Everything's going pretty well for Dimitri now, but what will happen next? Will Rose trust him enough to let him come with her? **

**Please let me know what you think of this chapter! ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you for the reviews! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 4**

**RPOV**

"So, umm, Dimitri," I said as we were about to board the plane. "Thank you for staying with me all night. I really appreciate it."

He smiled down at me. "It's fine, Rose."

I smiled back. "I hope you have a nice flight, Dimitri. It was nice meeting you."

"You too," he replied softly.

I turned back around and handed the gate agent my boarding pass. I didn't know why, but I kind of felt sad that I wouldn't be able to talk to Dimitri anymore. I didn't know him very well, but he really seemed like a nice guy. And he definitely was a gentleman. He'd proven that when he'd offered to sit next to me and keep watch while I slept. I don't think many people would do that for a stranger. But he did.

With a sigh, I entered the plane and walked to my seat. I sat down and put my bag under my seat, staring out of the window.

When I heard footsteps coming closer and then stop at my seat, I looked up. My eyes widened in disbelief and surprise as I saw Dimitri standing before me. He looked just as equally surprised.

"It looks like you're going to be stuck with me again," he said, giving me the faintest of smiles. "I hope you don't mind?"

"No," I said quickly. _Not at all._ "Wow, what a coincidence."

"Yeah, it really is," he said as he stowed his luggage in the overhead compartment before sitting down next to me.

I started to get nervous when the plane was about to take off. It had been a long time since I'd been on a plane. I think the last time was twelve years ago, when my parents had taken me on a vacation in Turkey. I couldn't remember much of it, though.

"Are you okay?" Dimitri asked as a worried look crossed his face.

I hadn't realized until now that my hands were shaking. "Umm, yeah. It's just been a long time since I've been on a plane," I mumbled, a little embarrassed.

To my surprise, Dimitri reached out and took my hand in his. "Here, just squeeze my hand if you're afraid."

I looked at him, uncertain, and then the plane started to shake. Gasping, I grabbed his hand and squeezed it, hard, but he didn't flinch or pull away.

"Don't worry, Rose," Dimitri murmured. "It's just turbulence."

I nodded and breathed out a sigh of relief when it was over. "Thank you," I whispered.

He gave me a small smile. "You're welcome."

Giving him a tight smile, I let go of his hand and closed my eyes briefly.

"Are you going to be okay?" Dimitri asked.

I opened my eyes to look at him and nodded. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

I watched as Dimitri took out his book and started reading. It was the same one he'd been reading this morning when I'd woken up. When I'd asked him about it, he told me it was a western novel and that he loved to read those kind of books. To me, it didn't sound that interesting, but that might be because I didn't really like to read.

I was curious, though, what Dimitri found so appealing about these books. I leaned closer to him and frowned when I realized the book was written in Russian. I was leaning so close now I could smell his aftershave, which smelled really good.

Suddenly, Dimitri looked up from his book and our foreheads almost touched. I let out a small gasp and pulled back quickly.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, looking amused.

"Yes," I said quickly. "I…umm… I was just trying to see what you like so much about westerns, but…umm… I can't read it. Obviously." I cleared my throat and looked away, embarrassed. "But I don't want to disturb you. I'll just let you read. Sorry."

He grinned and closed his book. "It's fine, Rose. If you want to talk, we'll talk. I can read some other time."

"Oh, but you don't have to-"

"I don't mind," he said smiling.

I looked at him, hesitant, and then smiled. "Okay," I said, perking up. "I have a question for you, though."

"And what's that?"

I bit my lip, hoping he wouldn't think I was rude. "Why are you wearing a coat in the middle of summer?"

"First of all, it's not a coat. It's a duster," he said. "And…" He shrugged. "I don't know. I always wear it."

"Why? You want to be like the cowboys in your book?" I teased.

He chuckled. "No, certainly not."

"I think you just don't want to admit it," I said grinning.

"Fine, you caught me," he said with a heavy sigh. "It has always been my dream to become a cowboy and catch bandits with my lasso." The corner of his mouth turned up in a half smile. "You happy now?"

I laughed. "I knew it!"

I found it very easy to talk to Dimitri. I only knew him for a couple of hours, but it was like I'd known him a lot longer than that. He was just so easy to talk to. I'd thought making friends would be much harder. But maybe it was so easy because he was so kind to me.

When we fell silent hours later, Dimitri yawned and rubbed at his eyes. I realized he'd been up all night and now I was keeping him from getting some rest.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I should let you sleep."

"No, I'm fine," he started.

I raised my eyebrows at him. "I can see you're ready to fall asleep. It's okay. I don't mind. You were up all night, looking out for me, so it's only fair if I let you get some rest now."

He gave me a warm smile and I felt something flutter in my stomach. I looked away and when I dared another peek at him, his eyes were closed. I waited a few more moments and when he didn't open his eyes for several minutes, I figured he'd already fallen asleep.

I couldn't help but notice how peaceful he looked when he was asleep. When I'd met him in the club last night, I figured I would never see him again and I hadn't given much thought about it anyway. I'd practically forgotten about him as soon as I saw my father's bodyguards in the club, even though he looked pretty hot. There was no denying in that.

In fact, he was the most handsome man I'd ever seen in my life with his chocolate brown eyes and his kind smile. His shoulder-length brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck, but a few strands had escaped and framed his gorgeous face. I could look at him all day.

I blinked and pulled back abruptly. What was going on with me? Why was I so affected by this man, a man I barely knew?

I quickly looked away. I didn't want him to wake up and see me watching him. I'd already embarrassed myself enough in front of him. Sighing, I grabbed my bag and went in search for my iPod. Maybe music would distract me from looking at him. I really hoped it would.

**DPOV**

I woke up hours later, feeling groggy and disorientated. Slowly, I opened my eyes and blinked a few times and then remembered I was on a plane with Rose sitting beside me. It had been a surprise when I'd found my seat and saw Rose sitting there, at the window. I guess Mazur had pulled some strings again.

I looked up at Rose, glad to see she was okay. She'd really looked scared when the plane had taken off and it had worried me to see her like that. I didn't know why I'd felt like that, but I was glad she was fine now.

She had earbuds in, humming to the music she was listening to. She didn't notice I'd woken up. She had a small notebook in her hands and tapped her pen against it. I sat up straighter and looked at it. It was a list of… I don't know what. I couldn't read it from here.

"What's that?" I asked, my voice a little hoarse.

Her head snapped up and she removed the earbuds. "Oh, I didn't realize you're awake."

I gave her a faint smile. "I just woke up, actually."

She noticed me looking at her notebook and quickly closed it and tucked it away in her purse. I frowned. What was written in there that I wasn't allowed to see? Was she hiding something?

I then realized I was still a stranger to her. Besides, it wasn't any of my business what she'd written down in her notebook.

"I'm sorry," I said, clearing my throat. "I didn't mean to be nosy or-"

"It's fine," she said with a smile. "It's just…a list of things I'd like to do in my life."

"Really? That sounds interesting," I said sincerely. "You want to tell me what kind of things you'd like to achieve in your life?" I asked, curious.

"Um, well, it was always a dream of mine to go on a trip through Europe," she said," so I guess I can scratch that one now. I'd like to go on a cruise too, but that's not for now."

I nodded, encouraging her to continue.

"I'd also like to get a tattoo, but my dad will kill me if I do," she said and she smiled. This was the first time she'd mentioned her father. She averted her eyes for a moment, probably thinking of him. I wondered if she missed him. It had only been a few hours since she'd left her home, but her father was the only family she had. Her smile turned sad, but then she shook her head and continued. "I want to learn a foreign language – I don't know yet which one, though. I want to go bungee jumping. I want to go camping. I want to fall in love and-"

Her eyes widened and a look of embarrassment crossed her face as she covered her hand over her mouth.

"Umm, yeah, there's a lot more, but those are some of the things I'd like to accomplish in my life," she said quietly.

I didn't know what she thought was so embarrassing about wanting to fall in love. It's what every person wanted in life, right? To fall in love, get married and have kids. I wanted those things, too.

"Hey," I said softly. "You don't have to be embarrassed for wanting to fall in love."

She shrugged and averted her eyes. "I guess not, but I've never fallen in love before. I wonder if it's ever going to happen for me. Not that I've really had a chance to be with someone," she added, muttering. Her cheeks flushed when she realized what she'd said. "I mean – it's not like I've never – I…" She groaned and buried her face in her hands. "Never mind."

"Don't worry so much, Rose," I said, chuckling. "You're not the only one who wants to fall in love. Everyone wants what you want. I want that, too."

Slowly, Rose looked up at me, a look of surprise covering her face. "You've never fallen in love before?" I shook my head and she continued to stare at me, incredulous. "You're not trying to tell me you've never been in a relationship before, right?" she said, raising her eyebrows. "Because I'm not buying that. I mean, look at yourself!"

I raised an eyebrow at her and she flushed again.

"I've been in a few relationships," I answered, "but it was never anything serious."

"Oh. Can I ask why?" she asked, sounding curious.

I shrugged. "I guess because I knew they weren't the one for me."

Rose opened her mouth to say something, then closed her mouth again and frowned. At last, she said, "Do you mind me asking, but…how old are you?"

"I'm twenty-five," I responded swiftly. I figured I should ask her the same question since she thought I didn't know anything about her except for the things she'd told me. "And you?"

"I'm eighteen," she said. "I didn't think guys your age were thinking about finding the one. I thought all they'd be able to think about is partying and getting laid as much as possible."

I chuckled. "Well, I guess I'm more mature then."

She smiled. "I'm glad you are."

"You seem pretty mature for your age, too," I said. "Why is that?"

She shrugged and looked down at her hands in her lap. "I guess I had to grow up a lot faster than my peers."

I realized she was talking about what had happened to her mother and decided not to push the subject. I didn't want her to be sad so I quickly changed the subject to something more cheerful and we talked the rest of the flight about trivial things.

When we finally arrived, we went to get our luggage. As we made our way toward the exit of the airport, I started to panic again. What was I going to do now? I couldn't just force my company on her and what would she think of me anyway if I'd just go with her without some kind of explanation? This was just an insane and stupid plan. She would never want me to go with her. This was her trip, her chance to be free. Why on earth would she want me to go along?

"So… where are you headed?" I asked when we were outside the airport, waiting for a cab.

"Good question," she mused.

I frowned. "You don't know yet where you're going to stay?"

"No," she said. "I didn't plan anything. Just the places where I'd like to go on my trip."

"Why didn't you?" I asked.

"Because I want to be surprised," she said. "I don't want to know where I'm going to end up. And I don't want to go anywhere fancy. I want to know what it's like to be a normal person without all the luxury I have at home."

I looked at her, incredulous. This girl was…nothing like I'd expected her to be. I'd thought she'd be a spoiled brat because her father was a millionaire and here she was, saying she didn't want any luxury. She also seemed so mature for a girl her age and like she'd said early, it was probably because she had to grow up a lot faster than her peers.

I suddenly felt ashamed that I was doing this, tricking this innocent and brave girl… All for money. But I needed it. Well, my family needed it.

"Do you know a place where I could stay?" she asked.

Before I could answer, she shrieked and clasped her hand over her mouth.

"What's wrong?" I asked immediately, looking around to see if there were any threats.

"My suitcase!" Rose exclaimed, horrified. "It was there moments ago and now…now it's gone!"

I frowned. "What? That can't be true."

"It _is_ true, Dimitri!" she said, her eyes wide. "I had it right here beside me and now it's not here anymore!"

"Why didn't you hold on to it?" I asked as I scanned the crowd, looking for someone who'd stolen a black suitcase. It was impossible to find out, though, because there were people everywhere with black suitcases. "Luggage gets stolen at airports daily. You always have to keep your luggage close to you. Did you not know that?!"

"But I did! I swear!" She moaned and shook her head slightly. She looked like she was about to cry. "What am I going to do now?"

"Ssh, it's okay. Calm down, Rose," I said gently, not wanting to upset her even further by lecturing her. "Do you still have your wallet?"

"Yes, it's in my purse." She opened her purse and showed me her wallet. "Yeah, it's right here," she said, relieved. "My ID and money and credit cards are still in here, too. Thank God."

"Good. That's good," I said.

"But what about my clothes?" she said, panicked. "And all of my stuff?"

"I'm sorry, Rose, but I think you won't get to see your suitcase back," I said, giving her a sympathetic look. "Did you bring something important with you? Something personal?"

"No, not really," she said sniffling. "Just my clothes and hairdryer and stuff like that."

"Do you want to go to report it to the police or-"

"No, it's fine," she mumbled. "Whoever stole my suitcase is probably long gone by now."

"Well, we could buy you some clothes, but it's already late," I said, glancing at my watch. It was already nine o'clock in the evening in Paris. There wasn't much we could do today and all the shops were probably closed by now. "I guess you'll have to wait until tomorrow."

She sighed. "Yeah, I guess."

"Let's get you to a hotel, okay?" I said as a taxi stopped in front of us at the curb.

She nodded and got in. I followed her and sat down beside her. With another sigh, she looked out of the window. I felt bad for her and wanted to cheer her up, but I didn't know how.

And secretly I thought it was good her suitcase was stolen – well, not exactly good – but now I kind of had a reason to go with her because she was so distraught. And the fact that she had no clue where to go to, was also good for me.

Suddenly, she turned to me and said, "Thank you for helping me and not leaving me alone right now. I might want to be independent and all, but I'm clueless. I don't know where to go, what to do,… I don't know anything. I don't even know how to keep my suitcase close to me at an airport. How stupid am I?" She sighed. "I guess my father was right when he said I shouldn't go alone," she muttered, more to herself than to me.

"Hey, that's not true," I said softly, lifting her chin with my fingers so I could look her in the eyes. "Your suitcase got stolen and it sucks. But that happens to lots of people. You're certainly not the only one," I assured her. "Don't let something like that bring you down. And whatever your father said… Prove him wrong. Prove him you can be independent."

"How am I going to do that?" she said frowning.

"Just do what you set out to do and make it worthwhile," I said, giving her a small smile.

She nodded and a tiny smile covered her face. "Thank you, Dimitri."

My smile widened and I gave her hand a gentle squeeze, glad I'd been able to cheer her up. Even if it was just a little bit.

* * *

**I'm sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I've been busy, but I'll try to update the next chapter on Thursday (or maybe Friday). **

**So, luckily Rose has Dimitri to help her out. But once she knows her way around, how long will she want him to stay with her? Do you think he's going to have to persuade her into letting him stay around? ;)**

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think of the chapter :) **

**Have a nice day/evening! ^^**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you for the reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 5**

**DPOV**

I checked us in while Rose waited by the door, looking around curiously. When I walked back to her, she looked up at me with a smile on her face.

"I'm sorry, but there was only one room left so we're going to have to share it," I said. It was a lie, but a necessary one. Mazur wanted me to stay with her at all times so I didn't have another choice than to share a room with her. Her eyes widened slightly and I quickly added, "But the beds are separated."

"Oh. Okay," she said, sounding relieved.

"Are you sure? I don't want you to be uncomfortable or anything," I said, praying she would be okay with this. "You know I won't hurt you, right?"

"Of course," she said hastily. "No, it's fine. Really. I don't mind."

_Thank God._

"Okay then," I said.

We took the elevator to our room and I slid the key card into the door before stepping aside so Rose could enter first. I followed her inside and put my duffel bag down on one of the beds as Rose gingerly sat down on the other, hugging herself.

"Are you cold?" I asked.

"A little bit," she admitted.

She was still wearing her dress from last night and didn't have a jacket with her. Now that her clothes were gone, she couldn't change into anything warmer either. I reached into my duffel bag and handed her one of my sweaters.

"Here," I said. "Pull this on. It's going to be too big, but it's better than freezing, right?"

"Thanks," she said, taking the sweater from me and pulling it on. "Oh my God, I look ridiculous," she said, laughing, as she looked down. She was drowning in my sweater. The hem reached her knees and the sleeves were way too long for her.

"Nah, I think it's cute," I said grinning and she started laughing even harder, thinking I was joking. It was true, though. She really looked cute in my sweater.

Sobering up, she said, "You really didn't have to do this for me, you know."

"Do what?" I asked, confused.

"Come with me and…making sure that I'm okay," she said. "I mean, I'm just a stranger to you and even though you don't know me that well, you still…you still want to help me out. You're even giving me your clothes."

I sat down on my bed, facing her. "I can't just let you wander around without…anything. And it's not like I don't know you at all," I added.

She gave me a small smile and admitted, "That's true."

"See." I smiled back. "Besides, I'd be worried about you anyway if I'd just left you standing at the airport. So I'm glad I came here with you."

"Really?" she asked.

I nodded. "I know you're not helpless, but you're still a girl and wandering around in Paris alone at night, wearing _that_ dress-" She giggled involuntarily and I smiled reluctantly "- I'm sorry but I don't think anything good will come out of that. It's better if you aren't alone in a big city like this."

"Yes, but-"

"I know, I know," I said quickly. "You want to be independent, but I want to help you if you need it."

"Okay, but I don't want to be an inconvenience to you. I mean, you're here for your job and I don't want to-"

"You aren't, Rose," I said reassuringly. "Really."

She nodded and then sighed. "Well, I'm going to take a shower. I feel gross. I've been wearing this dress for too long and I can't even change into something else," she said, pouting.

"We'll get you some clothes tomorrow," I promised.

When she retreated to the bathroom, I took out my cell phone and dialed Mazur's number.

"Is Rose alright?" he said immediately when he answered the call.

"Yes, she's fine," I responded. "We had some bad luck, but-"

"Bad luck? What are you talking about?" he interrupted.

"Her suitcase got stolen at the airport," I said. "She still got her wallet and phone, though."

"Oh okay, that's good," he said, sounding relieved. "If she doesn't have enough money left, you'll have to pay for her and then I'll pay you back later, okay?"

"Okay," I said.

"Did she say anything? About me?" he asked, hesitant.

"She mentioned you once, but that was pretty much all," I said.

"Oh. And she didn't sound mad?" he questioned.

"No," I said. She sounded sad, but I wasn't going to tell him that. He was probably feeling bad enough already. "She sounded…normal. I guess."

"Okay. Keep me informed, Belikov," he said before disconnecting.

Sighing, I leaned back against the wall and waited for Rose to come out of the bathroom. When she finally did, she was wearing her black dress again and the sweater I'd given her.

"Do you mind if I call my dad right now?" she asked. "He probably wants to know where I am. I didn't exactly say goodbye to him."

"Oh, sure," I said, getting up. "I'll get us some food."

"Okay, thanks," she said.

I took my wallet and put on my duster before leaving the room, giving her the privacy she needed to call her father.

**RPOV**

I bit my lip nervously as I waited for my father to answer the call. I didn't know if it was a good idea, but I kind of felt guilty for not saying goodbye to him. It surprised me a little bit that he hadn't called me yet. Did that mean he didn't miss me at all?

"Hey, Dad," I said softly when he finally answered the call.

"Rose! Where are you? Are you okay?" he said, frantic.

"I'm fine," I said. "And I'm in Paris."

"How could you do this to me, Rose!" he said. "Just leaving like that without telling me! I was worried sick."

"Then why didn't you call me?" I asked. "If you were so worried, why didn't you call?"

"Because I thought I should wait until you called me," he said. "If I remember correctly, you were very angry at me the last time we spoke."

"Yeah, well, you shouldn't have broken your promise," I huffed.

"I'm sorry, Rose," he said, "but I only did it to protect you."

"I'm eighteen, Dad. I'm not a child anymore," I said scowling. "I can take care of myself."

"Can you?" he challenged.

"I will never know if you won't let me find out!" I exclaimed. "Please don't tell me you're going to send Mikhail and Stan after me."

"That depends. Where exactly are you in Paris?"

"I don't know," I said sheepishly. "I… I'm in my hotel room. I don't know the name."

"How do you not know the name of your hotel?" he questioned.

_Because Dimitri picked it out and I followed him._ "I guess I didn't really pay attention to it," I said. "What does it matter anyway?"

"I don't like this, Rose. I don't like this at all!" Dad said. "You don't even know where you're staying. What if something happens to you? How am I going to find you then?"

"I'm safe. Nothing will happen to me," I said quickly.

"Right!" He sighed. "Why are you so stubborn, Rosemarie? Why couldn't you just let Mikhail come with you? He wouldn't have bothered you."

"I don't want Mikhail or anyone to come with me," I said. "You know that. I want to be independent. As soon as one of your bodyguards think there's something wrong, they come and swoop in. They don't let me handle it myself."

"But this is something else, Rose. Going on a trip on your own is dangerous and-"

"I've got to go, Dad," I interrupted him. I was tired of him chastising me. "And I'm not going to call anymore if you keep acting like this. I'm a grownup. It's about time you start treating me like one."

I disconnected and threw my phone onto the bed, only feeling slightly guilty for hanging up like that. With a sigh, I curled up on the bed and waited for Dimitri to return. Thinking about him brought a smile to my face. I couldn't believe how kind he'd been to me. I buried my face in my arms, taking in his scent. I'd already loved the smell of his aftershave, but damn…his sweater smelled ten times better.

Suddenly, the door opened and I quickly shot up, my cheeks bright red. Dimitri walked in and gave me a smile before handing me a sandwich.

"I didn't know what you like so I just asked for a regular one," he said.

"This is good. Thanks," I said smiling before taking a bite.

"So, did you call your father?" he asked.

I nodded and took another bite. Swallowing, I said, "He was mad."

"Because you left without saying goodbye?"

"Yeah, but he's…well, he's really protective and all. He didn't want me to go alone," I said. "He wanted someone to come with me."

"Why didn't he want you to go alone?" Dimitri questioned. "I get that he's worried and all, because you're his daughter, but…"

"It's hard to explain," I said evasively.

I didn't want to tell him who my father was, for fear he might have heard of him. My father was a well-known man and a millionaire. Most people have heard of him and if Dimitri had too, he might look at me differently. I didn't want him to think I was a spoiled, little girl because my father had a lot of money.

Dimitri nodded and said, "You don't have to tell me. It's not any of my business anyway."

"I'm sorry," I said, biting my lip. "I wish I could, but it's complicated."

"It's fine," he said, waving it away.

We continued to eat in silence and when we'd both finished our sandwiches, it was nearly ten o'clock in the evening. I didn't feel like sleeping, though.

"I need some fresh air. Do you want to take a walk with me?" I asked.

"Sure," he said.

We walked next to each other in a comfortable silence. I was wearing my dress and his sweater and I realized how terrible I must look right now, but I didn't care. Nobody knew me here so it didn't matter how I looked. Besides, this sweater was really warm and Dimitri thought I looked cute in his sweater, so maybe I didn't look as bad as I thought. Or maybe he just didn't want to hurt my feelings.

"Are you warm enough?" Dimitri asked, interrupting my thoughts.

I nodded and smiled at him. "Are you always this nice to people you've just met?"

He shrugged and gave me a half smile. "I don't know. Maybe it is because I like you."

I felt something flutter in my stomach again. Blushing, I averted my eyes and looked at all the small cafés instead. "I'm thirsty," I said, changing the subject. "Do you mind if we go get a drink? Or do you want to go back?"

"No, it's fine. We can go for a drink," he said.

Dimitri stopped at the first café we came across, but I shook my head at him and kept on walking. I wanted to get my mind off things. I wanted to forget about my conversation with my father. After walking around for a while, I finally found a bar. It looked like it was crowded and I could hear sounds of music coming from inside the bar.

"Are you sure you want to go in here?" Dimitri asked, raising his eyebrow.

"Yes," I said. "Are you coming with me or-"

"I'm coming with you," he said immediately as he opened the door for me.

I grinned at him and went inside, sure that this bar and the drinks it had to offer would distract me from my troubled mind.

* * *

**I'm sorry for the short chapter, but I wanted to update asap for you guys! :P **

**What do you think of Abe's little performance as a mad and worried father while he knows exactly where Rose is and who she's with? He might've overdone himself because now Rose is mad at him once again. And it seems like she might get herself in trouble the next chapter. Or will Dimitri prevent her from that? ;) **

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think of the chapter! Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you for your reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 6**

**DPOV**

"Rose, no!" I grabbed her arms and quickly pulled her away. She'd been leaning over the railing of the bridge to get a better view of the Seine, but in her state it wasn't safe to do that. "You've got to be more careful, Rose. You could fall and-"

She sighed heavily and rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed. "You sound just like my father," she said, walking away from me. "He's also always saying I should be more careful."

"Well, maybe you should listen to him," I shot back.

She rolled her eyes again. "You're no fun, D-dimitri," she hiccupped.

She'd been drinking all night. If I'd known _that_ had been the reason why she'd wanted to go out, to get drunk, I would've kept her in our hotel room. Now I was stuck with a drunk teenage girl who'd decided to be rebellious and refused to go back to the hotel with me.

I suppose I could've stopped her from drinking so much, but I wasn't her father. As far as she was concerned, I was just a friend and I couldn't force her to stop drinking. That might make her suspicious.

So now I was tagging along with Rose and followed her around while she complained about her father and her life at home. Maybe she wasn't as mature as I'd thought at first.

"We should go back to the hotel. You're drunk," I said, grabbing her arm once again.

She pulled away, frowning. "No! I'm not going back. I'm finally free. I can finally do what I want and now you're trying to tell me what I should or shouldn't do. You're not my father!" she said angrily.

_Fuck._ If we kept arguing like this, she wouldn't want to stay with me and she'd leave. I couldn't let that happen. I needed to stay with her. If I didn't, I could say goodbye to my money.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry," I said quickly, trying to appease her. "I'm sorry, okay? But maybe you should get some sleep. You can have fun tomorrow. When you're sober."

"Stop trying to tell me what to do," she mumbled, walking away again.

"But Rose-"

"Stop it!" She stopped walking and turned around, hands on her hips. "If you don't like it, then just go back to the hotel. You don't have to be here. I don't need you. I can take care of myself."

"Sure," I muttered under my breath. My patience was wearing thin. It was two in the morning, I was exhausted and all she seemed to want to do was to get in trouble.

"Just leave me alone," she continued. "I don't know why you think you need to save me all the time, but let me make this clear to you. I. Don't. Need. You."

"Well, I think you do need me," I said, crossing my arms. "I already had to save you twice in less than a day. Remember?"

She snorted. "I could've done that without your help."

She turned away from me and started twirling around. I took a deep breath and tried to calm down. If I had to put up with _that_ every day, I was going to ask for a raise.

"God, Rose, stop doing that," I said, jerking her away from the road. A few people walked by and looked at us, frowning. I glared at them, hoping it would make them walk faster. "Don't you know how dangerous that is?" I said, turning my gaze back to Rose. "You aren't even watching where you're going."

She pushed me away. "God, Dimitri, stop doing that," she mimicked. She scowled and said, "You're not my boss!"

I groaned in frustration and she grinned. I couldn't believe how childish she was acting right now. Where was the mature girl from a few hours ago?

"You know what, I don't care anymore," I said, annoyed. "Just do whatever the hell you want to do. But don't expect me to help you out when you get in trouble."

She shrugged. "Fine. Have a nice night."

She turned around and walked away, slightly stumbling. I watched her disappear into the dark and let out a sigh, already feeling guilty. I hurriedly walked after her, grumbling profanities.

"Rose, where are you?" I said, looking into an alleyway. I waited for a response, but it never came. "Look, I'm sorry about what I said."

I walked further and checked the other alley. She had to be here somewhere. She couldn't have just disappeared. I saw her walking here not even two minutes ago.

"Rose?"

I heard voices further down the alley followed by a scream. A female scream. I started running down the alley and saw a man pushing a much smaller person against the wall. Rose.

"Hey, get off of her!" I yelled, gripping his shoulders and pulling him away.

He stumbled over his feet and smashed to the ground. He attempted to get up, but stumbled again. He was probably drunk, too.

I turned to Rose. She leaned against the wall, her eyes wide in shock, as she looked at the man on the ground.

"Rose, are you okay?" I asked, cupping her face. "Did he hurt you?"

She looked at me and shook her head slowly. "No," she whispered. "No, he didn't hurt me."

I sighed in relief. "Let's get out of here," I said, taking her hand.

She nodded and followed me without a complaint. I guess this was not a good time to start lecturing her, because she seemed pretty shaken up. And I guess it was partly my fault, too. If I hadn't let her walk away, nothing would've happened.

When we got back to the hotel, she immediately curled up on her bed. I crouched down beside her and gently brushed her hair aside. I couldn't help but notice how soft her hair was. It felt like silk between my fingers.

"Are you sure you're okay?" I murmured.

Rose nodded. "Yes. I was just… I don't know. I was just startled when that man came up to me. He was babbling in French and I didn't know what he was saying. I think he was just laughing at me, because I couldn' understand him. And then, suddenly, he grabbed my arms and pushed me against the wall." She shook her head. "I don't know why."

It was probably some wanderer who'd wanted some money or maybe something worse... I didn't tell her, though, because I didn't want her to worry or frighten her even more.

"Shh, don't worry. You're alright now," I said softly. She swallowed heavily and looked away. "You want to get some sleep?" She nodded. "Do you want to get changed first?"

"I don't have anything to change into," she mumbled.

"I'll give you one of my T-shirts to wear," I said. "Is that okay for you?"

She nodded again. "Okay."

I searched my duffel bag for a T-shirt and handed it to her. She mumbled a thank you before going to the bathroom to get changed. She got out five minutes later, looking sober again.

"So, umm," she said, hugging herself. "I… I wanted to say I'm sorry for my behavior. I know you were only looking out for me and I… I behaved like a child. I acted like a bitch to you while you've done nothing but help me. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," I said sincerely. "I didn't mean what I said earlier tonight. I was being a dick. But I… I was worried about you. I don't want you to get hurt, you know."

"Well, maybe you are right. You saved me twice already – well, three times now," she said with a frown. "So…maybe I do need you."

"I think you can manage on your own. Well, at least when you're sober," I added wryly.

She smiled reluctantly. "Yeah. I don't drink very often," she admitted. "You now know why."

I chuckled. "Yeah. Well, I'm going to go take a shower."

"Okay," she said before crawling into her bed. "Thanks for letting me borrow your T-shirt. And your sweater."

"It's fine," I said with a small smile.

I closed the bathroom door behind me and shrugged my clothes off before stepping into the shower. When I got back ten minutes later, Rose was already sound asleep, curled up into a ball on her bed. She looked so peaceful. I smiled and gently put the covers over her. She stirred, but didn't wake up. Quietly, I turned around and flicked the lights off before climbing into my bed. I think I fell asleep before my head hit the pillow.

What only felt like a few hours later, I woke up to the smell of coffee. I opened my eyes, blinking a few times, and looked right into Rose's smiling face.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," she said. "I brought you some coffee and breakfast."

I sat up slowly and she moved to the edge of my bed. "I don't think you're supposed to bring the breakfast here," I said.

"Oh, it's okay. I talked to the waiter," she said winking. "He told me it was fine."

I didn't know why, but I didn't like the tone she used when she said she'd talked to the waiter. It sounded more like she had to flirt with him to get the breakfast to our room. And for some unknown reason, it made me grumpy.

"Don't let your coffee get cold," Rose said, handing the cup to me. "And I hope you like croissants. I already ate one and it was delicious."

She offered me the basket of croissants and I placed my cup of coffee on my nightstand before taking a croissant out of the basket.

"Thanks," I said, "but why are you doing this?"

"It's kind of a peace offering," she said, looking away for a brief moment. "For last night, you know. And well, for helping me out every time."

"I already told you, it's fine," I said, nudging her with my shoulder. She looked up at me and gave me a small smile. "And last night… You were drunk. Everybody behaves foolishly when drunk."

She shrugged. "I guess so."

"It's no big deal," I said, trying to cheer her up. I wanted to see her smile again. It made her look so much more beautiful. But even when she didn't smile, she still looked beautiful. "Let's just forget about it, okay?"

"Okay," she said grinning. "Thanks, comrade."

"Comrade?" I asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Yeah," she said shrugging. "You're always wearing that duster of yours and those god-awful books you read… I think 'comrade' is a suitable nickname for you." I chuckled and took a sip of my coffee. "Are you going to eat all the croissants?" she asked, eyeing the basket.

"No, you can have them if you want," I said.

Her grin returned as she took the basket and started munching on a croissant. And then another one. In less than ten minutes time, she'd eaten three croissants. I stared at her in disbelief; I'd never seen a girl with so much appetite. I liked it. She really was something different.

"What?" she said with a frown.

I realized I was still staring at her and quickly looked away. "Nothing. It's just that I've never seen a girl eat so much," I said honestly. She narrowed her eyes at me and I realized it had come out the wrong way. "I don't mean that that is a bad thing!" I added hastily. "I think it's good, actually. Most girls don't eat enough because they don't want to be fat-"

I cut myself off, but it was too late. I'd said the wrong thing again. She stared at me, indignant. "You're not fat! I didn't mean it like that. I swear. It's not what I meant at all," I rambled. "I was just trying to say – I mean, you have an amazing body."

_Oh, kill me now._ I should've just kept my mouth shut and let her eat. I might as well could've said that she was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen in my life! And why was she still sitting on my bed? And, more importantly, why was it affecting me so much?

Rose laughed. "So first you're calling me fat and now you're complementing me on my-"

"Yeah, let's forget I said anything," I muttered, looking away so she wouldn't see me blush. I never blushed, but this girl… She could make me blush in an instant if she wanted to.

She was still chuckling as she got up and sat down on her own bed. "I'll let you get ready," she said as she licked her fingers clean. "You promised to take me shopping and it's already ten in the morning. We won't get to do much shopping if you keep sitting there so hurry up."

"Are you always this bossy?" I asked, arching an eyebrow.

She just grinned at me. I rolled my eyes and drank the rest of my coffee before getting up. I heard a gasp coming from Rose and when I looked at her questioningly, her grin had dropped and her eyes had widened.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing," she said quickly. "I… I just thought about something. But it's…not that important. Never mind."

I frowned and then shrugged. I went in search for some fresh clothes in my bag and walked to the bathroom to get ready. I was already starting to regret I'd promised her we'd go shopping today. If that was all she wanted to do today, it was going to be a very long and exhausting day.

"I'm ready," I said as I walked out of the bathroom.

She jumped up from her bed. "Great!"

"Oh, wait," I said, turning back to take my camera out of my bag. "I can't forget to bring this along."

I was lucky I hadn't forgotten to take it with me and I was lucky I had one in the first place. It was a decent one, too, so I hoped I could fool Rose into thinking I really was a freelance photographer.

Our first stop was at Avenue des Champs-Élysées. I followed her in and out of every store, waiting patiently until she got what she wanted. What surprised me a little was that she avoided the expensive boutiques and shops. Maybe it was because she wanted to save her money for something else or maybe because she just didn't want to buy anything expensive. I think it was the latter because I remembered her saying she wanted to stay in a cheap hotel and that she didn't want any luxury.

A few hours later I could see she was starting to get hungry because she'd been eyeing the McDonald's for at least five minutes now as we walked along the avenue so I suggested we should eat something. After our lunch, we continued our shopping spree – well, Rose's shopping spree. Occasionally, I made a few pictures of the buildings around us.

The day wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. But I was pretty sure Rose had something to do with that. She was easy to talk to and she made me laugh quite often. Not many people could make me laugh or even talk that much, but she was one of them. I hadn't known her for that long, but I felt completely at ease with her.

I'd still been laughing about a joke she'd told me when she suddenly stopped at a lingerie shop. I sobered up pretty quickly and looked away as I felt my cheeks redden. It shouldn't surprise me, though, that we had to stop here. Her suitcase had been stolen so that meant that not only her clothes were gone, but also her underwear. Of course, she would have to buy new underwear. How had I not thought about that before? Now we stood here in an awkward silence, both looking away from each other.

At last, I cleared my throat and said, "I think I'd better wait outside this time."

She nodded. "Yeah. Sure."

"Why don't you give me your bags? I'll keep them until you get back," I said.

"Thanks. I won't be long," she promised as she handed me her bags.

I sighed and leaned against the wall as she walked into the shop. For now, everything was going good, but I wondered what would happen when she'd leave Paris and move on to her next stop. I knew I had to go with her, but how was I going to handle it? If she invited me to come with her, there wouldn't be a problem. But what if she didn't? What if she didn't want my company?

The same questions kept coming back to me and I had no answer for them. I guess I would just have to wait and see how things progressed.

"Comrade?" I blinked and then noticed Rose standing in front of me, waving her hand in my face. "Finally. I've been standing here for five minutes now."

"Sorry," I mumbled.

"It's okay. You seemed like you were in deep thought," she said. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," I said smiling. "Do you need to be anywhere else?"

"Nope. I think I've got everything," she said with a grin.

"How about we go back to the hotel to freshen up and then go out for dinner?" I asked.

"That sounds like a great idea," she said. "I can't wait to change out of this damn dress."

I chuckled. To be honest, I didn't mind her wearing the dress a little longer. She really looked beautiful in it. Unfortunately, I wasn't the only one who thought that. I'd caught a few guys checking her out as we'd walked down the avenue today. I hadn't liked how they'd stared at her like she was a piece of meat. Not that Rose had noticed any of it.

"Oh, sorry! I totally forgot you're still carrying all of my bags," Rose said as she motioned for me to give her shopping bags back. "Let me carry some-"

"No, it's fine," I said quickly. "I got it."

She raised her eyebrows at me. "Are you sure? There's a lot of them and I can imagine they're heavy."

"It's fine," I assured her. "Really."

"Thanks," she said smiling. "There should be more men like you, Dimitri. I wonder if you have any bad qualities at all. You just seem like the perfect guy!"

_Ha… Just wait until you find out about all my lies_, I thought bitterly. Suppressing a sigh, I said, "Let's go back."

Rose looked at me with a frown, probably wondering why I seemed so down all of a sudden, but fortunately, she didn't mention it. We walked to the nearest taxi stand in silence and as we returned to our hotel, the guilt started to wash over me once again.

* * *

**I hope you all liked the chapter. I'll try to update as soon as possible ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you for the reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 7**

**DPOV**

Much to my surprise, the following days were – well, I didn't have a better word for it – fun. I liked hanging out with Rose and as each day passed by, I started to like her more and more. Sometimes I even forgot that she was not my friend, but my charge and that I was here to keep her safe.

I kept telling myself I shouldn't become too close to her, because when she'd find out the truth when we'd go back to New York in two months she would surely hate me. A few days ago, I wouldn't have cared if she'd hate me, but now, after getting to know her, I knew I would feel awful if she would.

Whenever these thoughts popped into my head, I tried to keep my distance, but it was hard. There was just something about her. Something that made me come out of my shell. I've always kept to myself, but since I met Rose… It was different. _I_ was different when she was around. I could be myself when I was with her.

And sometimes, the guilt started to come back, but I always pushed it away and tried to enjoy the trip and Rose's company.

In those few days, we went to visit several museums, like Musée Picasso and Musée du Louvre. We actually had to come back to the last museum because one day was simply not enough to cover the entire museum.

We also went to visit the most famous church in Paris, the Cathédrale de Notre-Dame. Rose had stared at it in awe for more than five minutes. We went inside and climbed the steps to the towers so we could see the gargoyles and to admire the amazing view over Paris.

Afterwards, we took a taxi to see the Eiffel Tower. Rose wanted to get to the top, so we bought us some tickets. I suggested we'd take the elevator, but Rose wanted to take the stairs. I didn't really look forward to climb all those stairs, but, fortunately, we were obliged to take the lift at the second floor. When we finally reached the top, Rose had shut her eyes and clutched my arm.

"Are you scared?" I whispered in her ear, chuckling.

"N-no," she stammered as she opened one eye to peek at me. I arched an eyebrow and she sighed before admitting, "Okay, maybe a little bit. It's just so high."

"It's okay. Just open your eyes and enjoy the view," I said. "You can hold on to me if you get scared."

She nodded and took a step forward, gripping my hand firmly. "Wow. This is really high!" she exclaimed as she looked down. She grinned up at me and said, "Now I can cross another thing of my list."

Letting go of my hand, she took out her notepad and a pencil. Scanning her list of all the things she wanted to do, she crossed off 'standing on top of the Eiffel Tower'.

I took out my camera. "Smile."

She looked up at me, smiling widely, and I snapped a picture of her.

"Let me take a picture of you, too," she said. "You're always taking pictures, but you're never in one."

"No, it's fine," I said quickly. "I don't like to be in pictures anyway."

"What kind of photographer are you?" she said, raising her eyebrows. "You take pictures of everything and everyone around you, but you don't want anyone to take a picture of you."

I shrugged. "Well, _I_ am the photographer. So I don't need to be in a picture."

Rose grinned. "Well, that's too bad, because I want to take a picture with you!" Before I could stop her, she snatched the camera out of my hands and walked up to a man. They talked for a few moments and then she handed him the camera.

"Come here, comrade!" she said, waving me over. "This kind man is going to take a picture of us."

_Great_. Reluctantly, I walked over to Rose and she wrapped her arm around me, smiling.

"You have to smile, comrade," she said, nudging me. I looked down at her and raised an eyebrow. "Don't you know how to smile?"

"Of course, but-"

"Please smile for me," she said, batting her eyelashes at me. "Just one smile. Please, comrade?" She pouted at me and I started smiling without even realizing it until she said, "Yes, that's it! Now look at the camera."

She turned us around to the camera and leaned into me as she wrapped her arm around me again. I put my arm around her shoulders and did my best to keep the smile on my face, which wasn't so hard with Rose next to me.

The man took a picture of us and handed the camera back. Rose thanked him and then looked at the picture.

"Aww, you're smiling!" she teased.

"You wanted me to smile so I did."

After a while, we took the lift back to the second floor so Rose could buy a T-shirt from the gift shop. It said "I love Paris'. She pulled it on and I took another picture of her.

On our last day we went to Versailles. There was a long line, but at last, we made it inside. The guided tour was pretty good. The guide told us very interesting things as we walked around the palace and the gardens. It was all breathtaking.

After our visit, we went back to the hotel to freshen up and afterwards, we went out for dinner at a small restaurant near our hotel.

"Thank you for staying with me the past couple of days," Rose said after we'd finished our meals. "I had fun."

I had a feeling this wasn't going to go as planned. I knew she'd be leaving tomorrow morning and I'd been trying to find a valid reason to go with her, but I couldn't come up with anything. I couldn't just tell her I was going with her, whether she wanted it or not. I needed to find a good excuse to come with her.

"Me too," I said.

She smiled at me and then cleared her throat. "So where will you be going tomorrow?"

_Forget the good excuse. Just go for it and pray she won't think you're a stalker._

"Well, that depends," I said, trying to appear calm, as I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants. "Where are you going?"

She laughed. "What?"

"I figured we could travel together, you know," I said casually. "It's safer than to travel alone. And, well, I enjoy your company." And it was true. I really did enjoy her company.

Rose leaned back against her chair and frowned. "But what about your job?"

I shrugged. "It's not a problem. I didn't get any specific places to photograph so I can go wherever I want. As long as I give them what they want, they don't care where I go."

"Well, I guess we could travel together," she said, a little hesitant.

Oh no. This didn't look good. She was hesitating. She probably just said we could travel together to be polite. But from the looks of it, she didn't want me to go with her. Mazur was going to kill me if I came home without his daughter.

"If you don't want to, then it's fine," I started.

Hopefully, she didn't notice how panicked I was right now. What was I going to do now? Follow her to wherever she was going and then 'accidentally' meet her again?

"No, it's okay!" Rose said quickly. "I was just overwhelmed by your question. But you're right. It's safer to travel together than alone and if it doesn't matter which cities you visit to take your photographs-"

"It doesn't matter," I interrupted hastily.

"Well, then, sure, we can travel together," she said with a small smile. I almost sagged in relief. "And I know I'll be safe with you." I opened my mouth to say something, but she continued, with a warning note in her voice, "But as soon as you start telling me what I can and can't do, I'm leaving, okay? I'm here to be free. I might as well could've taken my father with me if I wanted to know what my limitations are. So none of that, okay?"

"Fine, I won't do that," I said. "But if you get drunk and start to do dangerous stuff, I will have to stop you."

"Fine," she said. "But only when I get drunk."

"It would be a lot easier if you'd stay sober. And to be honest, I don't like you as much when you're drunk," I teased.

"I don't like me either when I'm drunk," she said shrugging. "You're lucky it doesn't happen that often."

I smiled. "Thank God."

"So, it's a deal then?" she said grinning. "You're coming with me?"

"Yes, I'm coming with you," I said, my smile widening.

"It's kind of funny, because I never really wanted anyone to come with me," Rose said. "I wanted to go alone, but then I met you and… Well, I like that I'm with a friend right now. If I'd be alone, I wouldn't have anyone to talk to, but now I have you."

"I know what you mean. Most of the time, I'm on my own, too," I said. "I'm glad I met you, Roza."

She smiled. "You called me Roza before. Once. At the club when I left. It sounds like my name, but not quite."

"It's your name in Russian," I responded.

"I like it," she grinned.

So did I.

**RPOV**

I was starting to feel tired by the time we were back in our hotel room. Tomorrow I would have to get up early so I'd better get a good night's rest. Even though I was tired, I felt like skipping and doing a happy dance, because Dimitri was coming with me tomorrow.

When he'd asked me earlier tonight during dinner if he could come with me, I'd been very surprised - to say the least. Before I met him, I'd been determined to make this trip on my own. But these past days with him… It had been fun. I'd thought being alone for a change would be nice, but it was always better to have a friend with you. And Dimitri had become a friend to me.

I'd always feared I wouldn't be good at making friends. I never had a chance to make real friends because I got homeschooled. If you didn't count Mason and Eddie, then I had one true friend and that was Christian. But, surprisingly, it had been very easy to become friends with Dimitri. Or maybe it had been easy because he was just so easygoing.

"You still haven't answered my question," Dimitri said, snapping me from my reverie.

"What question?" I asked.

"Where are we going?"

"We are going to…"

"Yes?" Dimitri said, arching an eyebrow. "Please continue."

I grinned. "I'll tell you in the morning."

He groaned. "Oh, come on, Rose," he said in a whiny voice. "I want to know."

I laughed. "I didn't know you could whine, Dimitri."

"I'm not." I raised my eyebrows at him and he sighed. "Fine. I'll wait until tomorrow."

We each took our turns in the bathroom and then went to our separate beds. I was wearing one of the T-shirts I bought a couple of days ago and some shorts. I felt kind of sad I couldn't wear Dimitri's shirt anymore. It was really comfy and soft and it smelled like him. It had made me feel safe somehow. And I'd tricked myself into thinking it kept the nightmares away.

It was always the same one, about the night my mother had died. When I was younger I had those nightmares more frequently, but now there were times I didn't have a nightmare for months and then, suddenly, the same nightmare came back to haunt me for nights in a row.

"Are you okay, Rose?" Dimitri asked, a worried look on his face.

"Huh? Yes, I'm fine," I said, a little distracted.

I quickly let my eyes drift away from him. He was always sleeping in just his PJ bottoms and it was really distracting. He was so…well-built and muscular. And might I add, he was freaking hot. Even when he was wearing a shirt. Without the shirt… Well, I was surprised I hadn't started drooling yet. Whenever he walked out of the bathroom just wearing those PJ bottoms, I had a hard time looking away from him.

I was relieved when he climbed into bed and pulled the covers over him. He rolled onto his side and looked at me.

"Do I really have to wait until tomorrow?" he asked.

"Yes, comrade. Patience is virtue."

He rolled his eyes at me and muttered, "You're one to talk. You aren't patient at all."

"It's not about me right now," I countered.

Dimitri sighed and flicked off the lights. "Good night, Roza."

"Good night, Dimitri," I mumbled.

I closed my eyes and moments later, I fell asleep with a smile plastered on my face.

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**So, Dimitri can come along on Rose's trip - as long as he doesn't start acting like Abe. It seemed that Dimitri didn't have a hard time convincing her, but that might be because she really likes him ;)**

**Next chapter will be up in a few days, as soon as I've finished it. :)**

**Have a nice day/evening! ^^ **


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you for the reviews! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 8**

**RPOV**

"Wakey wakey, comrade!" I exclaimed, shaking his shoulder.

Dimitri let out a muffled groan and rolled away from me, burying his face in his pillow. I shook his shoulder again and he cracked one eye open to look at me.

"I liked it better when you woke me up with coffee and breakfast," he muttered as he sat up slowly.

"No time for that," I said grinning. "Now get up."

I turned away and started to put the rest of my stuff in my new backpack. This would be much easier to carry around than a suitcase.

Dimitri sighed heavily and made his way to the bathroom to get ready. When he got out fifteen minutes later, he quickly packed up his stuff and then we went downstairs to check out. We took a taxi to the train station and bought our tickets.

"So we're going to Amsterdam," Dimitri said, looking at his ticket.

"Yes, so if you don't want to go, you still have time to change your mind," I said, hoping he wouldn't change his mind.

"I already have my ticket," he said, arching an eyebrow.

I shrugged. "You could sell it."

"No, I'm going with you," he said smiling.

We still had time to get some food before the train would arrive. I bought extra sandwiches in case I got hungry on the train.

"Aren't you hot?" I asked when we'd found a seat on the train.

Dimitri raised his eyebrow at me, giving me a questioning look, and I realized what I'd said and how it must've sounded. I could feel my cheeks heat up. Oh God. How embarrassing.

"I meant, with the duster you're wearing," I added quickly, gesturing at his long brown coat.

He smiled slyly and shrugged a shoulder. "No, not really."

I was bored pretty quickly and there wasn't much you could do on a moving train so I suggested we should play a game. Not that we had a lot of options. We didn't even have cards.

"Do you know the game 'I spy'?" I asked.

He shook his head.

"Well, it's not hard," I said. "You just have to guess."

"Guess what?"

I cleared my throat. "I spy with my little eye something beginning with…" I looked around the train, in search for something good. "B," I said when my eyes landed on a book, which the man a few seats away from us was reading.

"And what do you want me to do exactly?" Dimitri asked frowning.

"You have to guess what I'm seeing!" I said impatiently. "And it starts with 'b'!"

"Oh, okay," he said and he started looking around. "Backpack?" he asked, eyeing my backpack.

I shook my head and grinned. He looked further and then spotted a mother with her baby. I started shaking my head before he could even say the words.

"Come on, it's not that hard," I said teasingly. "Look the other way."

Dimitri turned around and then grinned. "Oh, I know. Book."

"Yes!" I said grinning. "Finally. Took you long enough, comrade."

"Hey!" he said. "I can't help this is a lousy game."

I frowned. "Then you make something up to do!"

"Fine. Do you have a piece of paper?"

"No – oh, wait," I said, taking out my notebook. I ripped an empty page out of it and then handed it to him.

"And a pen?"

"Sure," I said, taking my purse. I handed him my pen and he bent over the piece of paper to draw something. I looked over his shoulder. "Hangman? Seriously?"

"You have a better idea?" he said.

I shrugged. "Nope."

The next hour or so we played three different games: hangman, Tic Tac Toe and 20 questions. The last one was exhausting me. After a while I was too tired to think any more and before I could stop myself, my eyes closed and the rocking of the train lulled me to sleep.

After a while, I woke up leaning against the window. I yawned and as I sat up straight, I noticed Dimitri's duster was wrapped around me.

"Good. You're awake." My head snapped up to see Dimitri sitting next to me, smiling. "We're almost in Amsterdam."

I yawned again. "How long was I out?"

"About an hour," he answered.

"Thanks for lending me your duster," I said as I reluctantly handed it back to him. The duster was really warm and smelled just like Dimitri and I wouldn't mind to have it wrapped around me just a little bit longer. "You must like me a lot if you'd give it to me," I teased.

To my surprise, he averted his eyes and blushed. "Don't get used to it," he said at last.

I smiled to myself and took out my sandwich. I was hungry; it had been three hours since I'd eaten. As I munched on my delicious sandwich, Dimitri took out his book and started reading.

"You want some?" I asked as I swallowed a bite.

He raised his eyebrow in disbelief. "You want to share your sandwich?"

I shrugged. "It's okay. I've got another one."

"It's fine, Rose-"

"No, come on, it's past midday," I said. "You must be hungry."

He eyed me warily as I gave him my last sandwich. We would be in Amsterdam soon so if I hadn't enough with my own sandwich I could always get something to eat in the city.

"You must like me a lot if you want to share your sandwich with me," Dimitri said, repeating my words.

I blushed and he looked amused.

"Well… Don't get used to it," I retorted, smiling smugly.

He chuckled and took a bite of his sandwich. We ate in silence. The train arrived at its destination ten minutes later. I hopped out of the train, followed by Dimitri.

"I need to pee," I announced.

"Thanks for the information," Dimitri said dryly. "We were on the train just five minutes ago. You could've-"

"I know," I interrupted. I looked around and grinned when I found what I was looking for. "There's the restroom! Be right back, comrade."

When I came back, Dimitri was talking to some strangers. I waited for him to finish his conversation and leaned against the wall.

"Are you tired of me? Is that why you're making new friends?" I asked when he finally came back to me. He opened his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. "Just kidding, comrade. I know you could never grow tired of me," I said, flashing him a grin.

He rolled his eyes, but smiled reluctantly. "Let's go, Rose."

"Fine. Where to?"

"I asked those people if they knew a good hotel that's nearby," he said. "So that's where we're going or do you want to carry your backpack around all day?"

"Nope. Lead the way, comrade," I said.

We ended up at a cheap hostel, not far away from the train station. There was an Italian restaurant nearby that I definitely wanted to try.

As Dimitri walked up to the reception, I hissed in his ear, "We're not taking a dorm room. I'm not going to bunk up with strangers."

"Duly noted," Dimitri said, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

When we got to our room, I was relieved to see there were separated beds. I didn't know what I would have done if there had only been one bed. Dimitri was already distracting me enough when he was shirtless, but if I had to lie in the same bed with him when he was only wearing his PJ bottoms… The thought alone made me blush furiously.

"Do you mind if I make a call before we head out?" I asked.

Dimitri shook his head. "Do you want me to wait outside or-"

"No, it's okay," I said. "You can stay here if you want."

I dialed Christian's number and waited for him to pick up the phone. I hadn't called him since I'd left. He was probably worried so I figured I should call him to let him know I was okay.

"Rose? Is that you?" Christian said when he answered the phone.

"Duh-huh. Who else would call you?" I said jokingly.

"Funny," he said. "What's up? Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," I answered. "How are you?"

"I'm good. Very good," he said. He sounded smug. "Alberta is baking me cookies."

I gasped. "What? Why would she do that?" I exclaimed.

Dimitri glanced at me, a small frown on his face.

"Why wouldn't she?" Christian retorted. "She likes me." I snorted and he continued, "If you want her cookies so badly, you should come back home."

"Nice try, Christian," I said, "but I'm not coming back yet."

"I know, but it's so boring without you," he said in a whiny voice.

"Aww, I miss you too, Chris," I said smiling.

"I didn't say that I miss you," Christian said hastily.

"Not literally, but it's what you meant."

"Whatever. Where are you anyway?" he asked, quickly changing the subject.

"We just arrived in Amsterdam-"

"_We_?" Christian inquired.

Shit. I'd completely forgotten that everyone at home thought I was on my own. How was I going to explain this?

"Yes, I'm with someone else," I said at last. I glanced at Dimitri, who was lying on his bed and reading his novel. He seemed pretty much engrossed in the book so hopefully he wouldn't hear me. "Remember the guy I met at the club?" I said, lowering my voice.

"No," Christian responded.

"The tall one," I said.

Christian sighed. "There are many tall people, Rose. How am I supposed to know-"

"But he's _really_ tall!" I half whispered, half growled. I cleared my throat and lowered my voice again. "And he's so handsome."

"You mean that tall guy with the dark hair at the bar?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, that's the one."

"What the hell, Rose?" he exclaimed. "Are you crazy? You don't even know that guy and now you're traveling around with him?! How did that even happen? You left him in the club."

I was a little taken aback by Christian's outburst. Nonetheless, I said, "Yeah, well, he turned up at the airport and he helped me out with…something. We talked and when we were about to board the plane, I didn't expect to see him again, but then it turned out his seat was next to mine!"

"What?"

"I know right! What a coincidence," I said grinning.

"And so you decided it would be okay to travel around with him and bunk up with him every night?"

"Why not?"

"He could be a bad person! A murderer or a-"

"For Christ's sake, he's not a murderer!" I exclaimed. "He's really nice and sweet. He's my friend."

"He might be pretending!" Christian argued. "He could be anything or anyone. I don't like this, Rose."

"Well, you don't have to like it. You just have to believe me when I say he's trustworthy."

"I don't know. I thought you didn't even want someone to come with you," he muttered. "What would your father say if-"

"If you tell him, I'll cut off your balls when I get back," I warned. "I mean it, Ozera."

"Fine," Christian said, sounding frustrated. "But promise me you won't do anything stupid."

"I promise."

"Well, I'd better let you enjoy your trip," he said sighing. "Have fun, Rose."

"Thanks, Christian."

I disconnected and put my phone away, sighing.

"Is everything okay?" Dimitri asked as he looked at me.

I grimaced. "You heard everything?"

"Pretty much," he said. "I'm not deaf." He looked amused. "So, I'm a murderer, huh?"

My cheeks burned red. "Christian is just being silly," I said.

"It sounds more like he's concerned about you."

"He doesn't have to be," I said firmly. "I'm alright. And he knows now that I'm safe with you so don't worry about what he said. He won't say it again."

"Only because you told him you'd cut off his-"

"You really did hear everything, huh?" I interrupted, narrowing my eyes at him.

"I don't get why you're so suprised by that," he said smirking. "We're in the same room, you know. How am I supposed to not hear you?"

I wondered if he'd heard me call him handsome. I might've been talking softly at that moment, but if he'd heard all the rest, he could've easily heard that too. I tried not to think too much about it before I'd start blushing again.

"Do you have to make another call?"

I shook my head and he got up, holding his hand out for me to take. I let my hand slide into his and he smiled.

"Well, then. Let's go and explore Amsterdam."

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**That was it for this chapter. Hope you liked it. Please let me know what you thought of it in a review ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	9. Chapter 9

**Thank you for your reviews! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 9**

**RPOV**

"Come on, Rose. It's time for bed."

I nodded and followed her down the hallway to my bedroom. I climbed into bed and she tucked me in before planting a kiss on my forehead.

"Goodnight, sweetheart," Mom whispered as she smiled down at me.

"Night, Mom," I yawned.

She got up and flicked off the lights as she left my room. I sighed and rolled onto my side, closing my eyes. I'd almost fallen asleep when I suddenly heard a door bang shut. My eyes snapped open and I sat up in bed. Quietly, I walked to my door and peeked around the corner. The lights were out so I couldn't see anything, but I heard whispers. Neither of the voices belonged to my mother. And my father wasn't at home. Then who could it be?

I walked to mom's bedroom and opened the door. She was sitting on her bed and looked up when I walked in.

"Sweetie, what's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?" she asked as she got up.

I shook my head. "I heard a bang and then voices."

She frowned. "That can't be, Rose. Nobody is here. You must've dreamt it."

"No," I said stubbornly. "I heard voices downstairs. In the hallway."

"Fine, I'll go down and see if someone's there," she said. I didn't think she believed me. She probably still thought I'd dreamt it. "Wait here, okay?"

I nodded and sat down on her bed as she went downstairs. I hoped it was Dad who'd come back home early. Maybe he'd read me a story before I went to sleep. He always did when he was at home.

But when Mom got back, she was alone and she looked pale. I got back up from the bed and walked toward her.

"Mommy?" I said, suddenly feeling scared.

"Rose, go hide in the closet," she said, her voice wavering.

"W-why?"

"I can't explain, Rose. Please just do as I say," she said urgently, opening the closet door for me. It was a big closet. Very big. I'd hidden in it before – when I'd played hide and seek with Dad. "Don't get out, do you understand me? Don't get out until I say so."

I nodded and crouched down in the closet, hiding behind all the clothes and shoes. I could barely see my mom.

"Everything will be alright, sweetie, as long as you stay here, okay?" she said. I nodded again and she smiled at me. "I love you."

"I love you too, mommy," I said.

She closed the door and everything went dark. I waited and waited until I heard screams coming from downstairs. I bit my lip and closed my eyes, hoping the screams would fade away. But then I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and into this room. The door slammed shut and then there were a few bangs on the door before I heard my mom cry out.

Suddenly, there were lots of voices in the room. I heard my mom screaming and another man screaming at her to shut up. I couldn't take it anymore. I wanted to see what was going on and why they were yelling. I opened the closet door, leaving it ajar, and peeked outside.

There were two strange men dressed in black and one of them was holding a gun. He pointed it at my mom, who was crying.

"Tell me where the money is!" the man with the gun yelled.

"There's no money here!" Mom cried.

I gasped and clamped my hand over my mouth as I stared at her. She told me to stay in the closet. I had to stay here until she said I could get out. I couldn't get out now. I –

There was a loud bang and then my mom fell to the floor. I had to bite my tongue to keep from screaming. But my mom… She didn't move anymore. She didn't get up.

I let out a muffled cry and then, suddenly, the man who'd shot her walked toward the closet. Slowly, he reached for the doorknob and opened the door. When he saw me, he started grinning and lifted his gun.

And I started screaming.

"Rose! Roza!" Someone was shaking my shoulders. "Rose."

"No! Don't! Let go of me!" I shrieked, trashing against my attacker.

"Roza! It's me." He was still shaking my shoulders. "It's Dimitri."

_Dimitri. _

My eyes snapped open as I stared into his face. He was leaning over me, his hands on my shoulders, and a worried look on his face.

"Dimitri," I gasped. Sweat trickled down my face. Or was it tears?

"Roza, are you okay?" Dimitri said, clearly relieved that I was awake.

I looked around and noticed I was in bed, in our hostel, safe and sound. It had been just a nightmare. _Just a nightmare. Yeah right. _I closed my eyes and tried to force back the tears.

"Roza?"

I opened my eyes to look at him and my bottom lip started quivering. Before I could stop myself, I burst out into tears. Without saying anything, Dimitri slid under the covers with me and held me in his arms as I cried into his chest.

"Shh, you're alright, Roza," Dimitri murmured as he stroked my hair. "Whatever it was that you were dreaming, you're safe now. You're safe."

He kept repeating those words until my sobs finally quieted down. We lay in silence for a while, his arms still wrapped around me. I took a shaky breath and wiped the tears from my cheeks.

"Feeling better?" Dimitri asked quietly.

"Yes. Thank you," I whispered.

He didn't make a move to get up. Instead, he tightened his arms around me. "You want to talk about it?"

I shook my head. "No, not yet."

I felt his lips against my hair as he whispered, "Okay. Do you think you're going to be okay?"

"Yes. I'm sorry for waking you up."

"It's okay, Roza." Slowly, he let go of me and slipped out of bed. I had to keep myself from grabbing his hand and pulling him back into bed so I would feel safe again. "If you need me, I'm right here," he whispered before kissing my forehead softly and returning to his own bed.

"Thank you, Dimitri," I murmured.

I sighed and rolled onto my back, staring up at the ceiling. I didn't fall asleep again that night.

**DPOV**

It was quiet as we walked toward the Vondelpark. Rose hadn't said much since we'd gotten up this morning. There was no smile on her face and I hated it. I hated to see her so sad. And all because of a nightmare.

I wondered what it had been about. It must've been pretty bad, because she'd been trashing and crying in her sleep. It had taken me a while to wake her up and when I finally had, she'd started crying all over again. And there was nothing that I could've done to make it better, except hold her in my arms until she'd calmed down.

I wished I could cheer her up. I wanted to see that beautiful smile on her face again. If only I knew how to cheer her up.

"Are you ready to talk about it?" I asked at last, breaking the silence.

Rose sighed and looked at me.

"You don't have to," I added quickly. "But…sometimes it helps to talk about it, you know."

"I know," she said softly.

She walked toward a bench and sat down. I came to sit down next to her and waited until she'd say something.

Taking a deep breath, she said, "When I was eight, my mother was killed by two burglars."

Oh God. That was what she'd been dreaming about. How had I not realized that? What else could've upset her this much? Mazur had told me about it, but he hadn't given me any details.

"I heard them talking downstairs so I went to my mother's bedroom," she continued quietly as she looked down, her hands folded in her lap. "She told me to hide in the closet while she went downstairs. I guess she went to get the phone so she could call the police, but I'm not sure that's the reason she went back downstairs." She shrugged a little. "I did as I was told and waited in the closet for her to come back. But when she came back, I heard her screaming. There was a lot of noise. I think she was trying to barricade the door, but the burglars got in." A tear ran down her cheek and she wiped it away quickly. "I – I wanted to get out of the closet and help her, but she told me I couldn't get out until she said so. So I stayed there and watched them through a small opening. They wanted money, but Mom said there wasn't any here and then… One of them shot her," she whispered.

This time, she didn't stop the tears from running down her cheeks. Before I could change my mind, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me. She buried her face in my neck and twisted her hands in my shirt.

"I'm so sorry, Roza," I murmured.

"I keep having nightmares about it," she said in a muffled voice. "I used to dream about it every night, just after it had happened… But after a while it stopped and since then I get that same nightmare occasionally. Sometimes I don't dream about it for months and then, suddenly, it comes back."

"Have you ever talked about it to anyone?" I asked.

"Yes, I had to go to a therapist for a while…afterwards. But that only lasted for about a year. Dad and I moved to New York and since then…" She pulled away slightly and shrugged. "Since then my father is being overprotective. I got homeschooled and I wasn't allowed to leave the house without a bodyguard and-"

She cut herself off abruptly. "Shit," she muttered. A small, watery smile appeared on her face. "I wasn't supposed to tell you that."

"What? That you apparently have a bodyguard?" I said, arching an eyebrow. It was important to keep up appearances. I supposedly didn't know anything about her father hiring bodyguards to keep her safe.

"Well, we actually have four," she admitted. "Like I said, my father is overprotective and paranoid something might happen to me. Because of…because of what happened to my mom."

I put my hand on hers and squeezed it gently. "Your father is just trying to keep you safe. He wants to protect you."

"I know, but it's just too much," Rose mumbled. "I never get to have any privacy. I can't leave the house on my own. It's driving me crazy." She sighed, frustrated. "Dad has always wanted to make big money. He's got what he wants now, but at what cost? Because of all that money, Mom isn't here anymore."

"Do you blame him for her death?" I asked.

"No, it's not his fault. It could've happened to any family, I guess. But, well, people know my father. He's… He's an important man in the weapon industry and he makes lots of money. The burglars knew. That's why they chose us." She sighed. "But I can't blame him. It's not like he asked for any of it. He just wanted to make us happy."

I wrapped my arm around her and she rested her head on my shoulder. "I'm not going to pretend like I know how it feels like to lose your mother," I said quietly, "but I… I know what it feels like to lose someone important to you."

She looked up at me. "You lost someone in your life, too?"

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. I'd never talked about this to anyone. "Yes, my best friend. Ivan."

"What happened?" she asked, biting her lower lip.

"When we were in high school, he started hanging out with the wrong guys," I said sighing. "He got involved with drugs and…well, I told him he should stay away from those guys, but he didn't want to listen. As far as I knew, he wasn't taking any drugs. He was just selling him. Or so I thought. One day he came to me, though, and said he needed money. I didn't have it at the time. I asked him what was going on, but he wouldn't tell me. He just ran off." I shook my head and sighed again. "I know I should've told his parents, but I didn't. Because he was my friend. The next day they found his body in his room."

Rose let out a small gasp. "Oh my God…"

"The doctor said it had been an overdose," I continued, grim. "But… I don't believe that."

Her eyes widened as she looked at me. "W-what do you think happened to him?"

"I don't know, but I'm guessing those guys had something to do with it," I answered bitterly. "Ivan needed money for something. Normally, he'd ask his parents for money, but he hadn't this time. He'd come to me instead. I figure he owed those guys money and because he couldn't pay it… I think they killed him and made it look like an overdose." I frowned. "Not that I could ever prove that."

"Oh my God. I'm so sorry, Dimitri," Rose whispered, shocked.

"He could have lived," I whispered, suddenly overcome with grief. "If I'd helped him… If I'd asked my mother for money… If I hadn't let him run off…"

I'd never told this to anyone. Not even my family. They knew what had happened to Ivan, but they didn't know about him being involved with those guys and what I thought that had truly happened. It felt relieving to finally be able to confide in someone.

"Dimitri, you can't blame yourself for what happened to Ivan," Rose said softly, placing her hand on my arm. "It's not your fault. You didn't know what was going on."

"But I knew he was involved with those guys. I could've told his parents."

"You were being loyal to your friend," she countered.

"Yes, and look where it got him," I scoffed.

"It's not your fault," Rose said firmly, tugging at my arm. "Look at me, Dimitri." Reluctantly, I looked up and into her brown eyes. "It's not your fault. You tried to help him, you told him he should stay away from those guys, but he didn't want to listen to you. Ivan made his decision to go through with it. And yes, I know, you could've gone to his parents, but… Everyone makes mistakes, Dimitri. But you'll have to learn to forgive yourself."

I looked up at her and gave her a small smile. "Never thought you'd be so wise, Rose. You impress me."

"I have my moments," she said, grinning proudly. Clearing her throat, she said, "Well, I think we've been sad enough for one day. How about we go do something fun?"

I smiled. "I'd like that."

She got up and I did the same. She turned towards me and looked down for a second. At last, she looked up again and said, "Thank you, Dimitri, for listening to me. You were right. It helps to talk about it."

I was a little surprised when she wrapped her arms around me. I recovered quickly, though, and hugged her back.

"It's fine, Roza," I murmured. I suddenly felt the urge to kiss her forehead, like I'd done last night, but a voice inside my head said it was a bad idea so I pulled away. "You can talk to me about it anytime you want."

"Thank you," she said with a small smile. "You've become a true friend."

I forced a smile and led her toward the park's exit, trying not to feel too guilty.

* * *

**Some of you have asked when Dimitri and Rose are finally going to kiss. I'll assure you know,**** it will happen soon. But it won't be for the next chapter. There will be an awkard but funny moment between them, though ;)**

**Please let me know what you thought of this chapter and have a nice day/evening! :) **


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you for all the reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 10**

**DPOV**

"Yes, she's fine," I murmured into the phone.

I looked over my shoulder to see if anyone was behind me. As Mazur continued talking about Rose's safety, I leaned against the wall and suppressed a sigh. I was downstairs, in the lobby, whilst Rose was upstairs in our room. I'd told her I needed to call my family and let them know I was okay, but instead I was calling her father.

"Like I said, other than the nightmare the other night, she's fine," I interrupted. Rose was probably wondering where I was. I needed to go back to our room.

"Okay, well, it's good that you were there when she had the nightmare," he said. "I don't know what she would've done if she'd been alone. It's very upsetting to her."

_Yes, I've witnessed that. And I'd prefer not to see her that upset ever again._

"She's okay now," I responded.

"I'm glad to hear that." He cleared his throat. "I have to go to a meeting now. Keep me informed."

"I will," I promised.

I knew I should probably head back to my room, but I hadn't talked to my mother in ages. She was probably wondering what I was up to and why I never called. I guess I should let her know I was fine. She answered the phone on the first ring.

"Dimitri!" she exclaimed. "How are you? How come I don't hear you anymore as often? Where are you?"

"I'm okay, Mama," I said quickly. "And I've been busy. I've taken on a new job."

"Oh, how's it going?"

"Umm, it's going pretty well."

"Are you sure? Because it doesn't sound like it," she noted.

I sighed. "It's complicated. And it's not why I called," I added. "How are you? How's Vika? And the rest of the family? Is everyone doing okay?"

We kept talking for a while and I almost lost track of time. I really should be heading back to Rose and see if she was okay.

"Say hi to everyone, okay?" I said.

"Of course," Mama said. "Call me back soon. I'm always so worried when I don't hear from you for days."

"I'm sorry. I'll call you back as soon as I can."

"Okay. I love you, Dimitri."

"I love you too, Mama."

With a sigh, I disconnected, put my phone back into my jeans pocket and walked back to our room to find it empty. I stopped in the doorway and looked around. Where the hell did Rose go? She said she would wait here for me. And I hadn't seen her anywhere near the lobby. She didn't run off without me, did she?

Panicked, I walked to the bathroom and opened the door. A shriek erupted from the room and I froze, staring at her wide-eyed. I quickly turned around and closed my eyes, but it was too late: I'd seen her naked.

"Oh my God, Dimitri! Can't you knock?" Rose exclaimed.

I turned back around, but didn't open my eyes. "I'm sorry! I didn't know you were here."

"Where else would I be?!"

I opened one eye and saw that she'd wrapped a towel around her body. _Thank God_. "I don't know," I mumbled. "I came back and I thought you'd left."

"I said I would wait for you," she said, her cheeks red, as she clutched the towel to her body. "I was just taking a shower."

I nodded. "Well, I'll, umm, let you get ready," I stammered. "I'm sorry."

I quickly turned around and closed the bathroom door behind me. Taking a deep breath, I let myself fall onto my bed. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to get the image of Rose naked out of my head. But how was I ever going to do that? I'd only seen a flash of her, but it was enough to know that Roza was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen in my life.

Oh God, I wish I'd knocked on the door before entering, but I'd been so panicked. I hadn't thought Rose would be there. God, I was so stupid.

When Rose finally got out of the bathroom – it took her longer than usual – I shot up from my bed and said, "I'm so sorry, Rose. I didn't know – I swear. I didn't mean to-"

To my astonishment, she started laughing. "Jeez, comrade. Relax. It's okay. I know it was an accident." I gaped at her. "What's wrong with you? Most men would be more than happy to see a woman naked."

I blushed and looked away. "I'm really sorry," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"It's fine," she said, waving it away. "Let's just forget about the incident, okay?"

I nodded. "You ready to leave?"

We went to visit the Anne Frank House. The museum was pretty amazing. It was a somber experience, though, knowing that such a young girl and her family had to hide here for several years.

Next, we went to the Van Gogh museum. I didn't know much about paintings, but I could say that these were incredible.

"Wow, that was pretty much amazing," Rose said as we walked out of the museum.

"Yes, it was," I said, not looking at her.

"God, Dimitri, are you going to keep acting like that?" she said, sounding frustrated.

I looked up at her, frowning. "Like what?"

"You haven't looked at me since this morning!" she said. "Not once!"

"That's not true," I protested.

"It is!" she insisted. "Is it because you saw me naked? That's why, isn't it?"

"Roza! People can hear you," I hissed as I quickly looked around to see if anyone was within earshot.

She didn't hear me. "Why are you so embarrassed? I should be the one embarrassed, because _you_ saw _me_ naked. Not the other way around."

"I'm not-"

"Or am I that ugly? Is that why you-"

"No, Roza. Of course not! You're beautiful!"

My eyes widened when I'd realized what I'd said. She looked at me, astonished. Then, slowly, a grin spread across her face.

"You think I'm beautiful," she said. It was more a statement than a question.

I felt my cheeks heat up. "I, umm…"

"Aww, comrade," she said smiling. "Thanks for the compliment. Now, will you get over yourself and act like a normal person?"

"Fine," I grumbled begrudgingly.

She sighed. "Good. I'm glad we cleared that up."

"Do you want to head back?" I asked, eager to change the subject.

"No, unless you want to," she said.

We ended up taking a walk along the canals, admiring the view, and visited the flea market. When we started to get hungry, we went to a small Italian restaurant close to our hostel. We didn't feel like going back yet so we went to a small café afterwards. This time, Rose didn't drink any alcohol – much to my relief.

"You know, you never told me anything about your family," Rose said all of a sudden.

"You want to know about my family?" I asked, a little surprised.

"Yes!" she said, grinning excitedly. "Do you have siblings?"

"Yes, I have."

"What's that like? Is it fun to have a brother or a sister?"

I smiled. "I don't have any brothers. Just sisters."

"Really?" she said. "How many sisters do you have?"

"Three. I've got two elder sisters, Karolina and Sonya, and one younger sister, Viktoria. She's about your age, actually."

"Are they all living in your hometown?"

"Yes, with my mother and grandmother," I said, nodding.

"You grew up in a house full of women?" she exclaimed. "That must've been hard on you!"

"Sometimes," I admitted. "But I love them."

Rose smiled. "So…" she said slowly, her eyes twinkling. "Does that mean you played with dolls instead of cars when you were a kid?"

I laughed. "No."

"Let me guess, you just sat in your room and read books all day," she said as she crossed her arms and smiled smugly.

"Something like that, yeah," I said shrugging.

Her smile faded and she leaned forward, her face serious again. "You never mentioned your father. Is he… Did something happen to him?" she asked hesitantly.

"Oh no," I said quickly. "He left after Vika was born. I don't remember much of him."

She frowned. "That sucks."

I shrugged. "Not really. From what I remember, he's not a nice guy."

Rose gave me a sympathetic smile and squeezed my hand gently. "Well, I think your mother did a pretty damn good job on raising you on her own. Not that I have much experience with people in general, but I think you're a great person."

I grinned. "Thanks. I think you're a pretty great person, too."

She smiled widely and I suddenly realized I was still holding her hand. She looked up at me, her smile gone. My heart started beating faster as I stared into her eyes. Into those beautiful brown eyes…

I barely noticed I was leaning forward when, suddenly, her phone started ringing. Clearing my throat, I let go of her hand and looked away.

"I'm sorry, it's my father," she said. "I'm going to have to take this call."

I nodded and she got up and walked outside. I let out a sigh and leaned back against the chair, burying my face in my hands. What the hell was I doing? I'd almost kissed her. I'd almost kissed my charge! If her phone hadn't rung…

I was getting too close to her. Way too close. Mazur had told me to become friends with her and not anything more. But the way we interacted with each other, the way she made me feel… That was more than friendship. At least, it was to _me_.

"Dimitri, are you alright?"

Startled, I looked up. Rose stood next to me, a small frown on her face.

"Y-yes. Is everything okay with your father?" I asked, getting up.

She shrugged. "I don't know. I think he's still mad at me for leaving the way I did. Without saying goodbye, you know."

"He's probably just worried about you," I said, squeezing her shoulder gently.

"I guess," she mumbled. "Do you mind if we go back? I'm tired."

"Sure. We'll go back," I said, following her out the door.

We walked back to the hostel in silence. She was shivering and I wanted to put my arm around her and give her some warmth, but I reminded myself I was already too close to her.

I was glad when we finally got back to our room and Rose disappeared into the bathroom. I really needed some time alone to think about what had _almost_ happened. And if it had happened, it would've been because of me. _I_ was the one who'd leant forward. _I_ was the one who'd almost kissed her.

My head snapped up when the bathroom door opened and Rose walked out in her shorts and a T-shirt. I moved past her without glancing at her. If I did, I might do something I would regret. I closed the door behind me and took a deep breath before walking to the sink and splashing water in my face. Maybe this would help me clear my mind.

But it didn't. All I could think about was Roza.

Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door. "Dimitri? Are you alright? You've been in there for a while now," Rose said through the door.

"Yes. I'm…fine," I answered.

I took another deep breath and walked out of the bathroom. Rose was already in her bed, much to my relief. I flicked off the lights, mumbled a good night to Rose and got into bed.

My mind went back to what had almost happened in the café. How could I've let it come so far? My only job had been to befriend her and make sure she was safe. But instead, I'd grown closer and closer to her. It had never been my intention to become so close to her, but it happened and now I didn't know what to do. I couldn't just keep my distance from her, because I had to spend every moment of every day with her. And I didn't _want_ to keep my distance from her.

I was almost afraid to close my eyes. If I did, I might see her…naked. Once again, I cursed myself for barging into the bathroom this morning. It had only made things worse for me.

I sighed and closed my eyes, willing myself not to think about Rose. I needed to get some sleep. Maybe it would all be clear to me in the morning. Maybe I would wake up and see Rose again as my friend and nothing more. Because it couldn't be, right? I couldn't have feelings for her. There had to be another reason for why I'd wanted to kiss her.

But what other reason could there be? Maybe I'd wanted to kiss her because I was attracted to her. I'd been attracted to her from the beginning. There was no denying in that. But to actually have feelings for her? That couldn't be true.

_I don't have any feelings for Rose. She's just my friend. Nothing more. _

Maybe if I kept repeating it, I would actually start to believe it.

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**That was it for this chapter. I hope you all liked it! :) **

**I know this chapter was a little short. The next one will be longer. Promise. And who would like a Romitri kiss in the next chapter? ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	11. Chapter 11

**Thank you for the reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 11**

**RPOV**

"Christian, I need your advice."

"Oh no. What did you do this time?" he said warily.

"Nothing," I exclaimed. I realized how loud I was talking and added in a hushed voice, "I didn't do anything!"

I was sitting on the bathroom floor while Dimitri was reading in the other room. I hadn't wanted him to hear this conversation so I'd moved to the bathroom for some privacy.

"What's wrong, then?" Christian asked.

"Dimitri's acting strange," I said sighing.

"You mean the tall guy?"

I rolled my eyes. "Yes. And will you please stop calling him that?"

"Fine, fine. What do you mean, he's acting strange?"

"Well, we had this little incident yesterday and now-"

"What kind of incident?" Christian asked slowly.

Damn. I really didn't feel like telling this to Christian. He would probably laugh his ass off. "He… He saw me naked," I whispered at last.

"He _what_?!"

"It was an accident," I said quickly. "He walked in on me while I was in the bathroom. He thought I'd left."

Christian snorted. "Yeah right. He's probably a pervert."

"That's not true. He kept apologizing over and over again and didn't even dare to look at me the rest of the day until I finally said something about it," I said, hugging my knees to my chest. "He was all flustered."

Christian started laughing. "Maybe he's never seen a naked girl before."

"Don't be silly. He's twenty-four," I snapped. "He's just being respectful. And you're one to talk. Like you've ever seen a girl naked before."

"Why are you even calling me about this? I don't really feel comfortable talking about this, you know," he said, quickly changing the subject. "I mean, it's _you_ we're talking about. I don't want to think about you…naked. That's weird."

I groaned. "You wanted to know what happened so I told you. It's your own fault. Now, listen to me. I wasn't finished yet."

He sighed. "Okay. Carry on."

"So when I told him to get over it, he started acting normal again," I continued. "But later that night… We were at this café and we were talking and then, suddenly, I don't know… He was leaning towards me and I think he wanted to kiss me, but I'm not sure."

"This is girl talk," Christian complained. "I can't help you with this, Rose."

"Yes, you can! You're a guy and so is Dimitri. You know how men think," I said, leaning my head against the wall.

"Fine, but I'm only continuing this conversation because you're my best friend," he grumbled. "Remember that."

I smiled. "I will."

"So, what happened next?"

"Dad called so Dimitri pulled away and I went outside to talk to my dad. When I got back, Dimitri was acting all strange again. And it's the same today."

"Well, it seems to me that he likes you, but isn't sure about his feelings yet," he responded.

"You really think so?" I asked, surprised.

"Well, if it's true and he was about to kiss you…"

"I don't know. I might've misread his signals."

"Why are you concerned about this anyway? I thought he was just your friend," Christian said. There was a silence and then a gasp. "You like him, don't you?"

"No," I said quickly. Too quickly.

I could almost hear him grinning through the phone. "Yes, you do."

"Fine, I do," I admitted. It was true. I did like him. A lot. "What am I going to do now?"

Christian sighed. "Well, you could talk to him about it, but…that could get very awkward if he doesn't return your feelings."

"I can't do that. He might leave if he knows I like him," I said. "I don't want to scare him away. And it probably means nothing. It's just a crush."

"Just a crush," he repeated.

"Yes!" I insisted. "I can't help it. The guy is perfect."

"I'm sure he has his faults, too, just like every human being – oh hey, your old man's here. He wants to talk to you."

I frowned. "What? I talked to him last night. And are you at my house again? Are you living there now or what?"

"I'm sorry, Rosie, but I've got to go. Good luck with you know what," he said, a little too cheerful.

"Christian! Come back-"

"Hey Rose. How are you?"

"Oh hi, Dad! I'm good. How are you?"

"I'm fine. I miss you, though."

"I miss you too," I mumbled.

"Why was Christian wishing you good luck? Did something happen? Are you in trouble?" Dad questioned.

"No, no," I said quickly. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

"I'd feel so much better if you'd just let Mikhail or-"

"No!" I interrupted. "Don't start again, Dad."

He sighed. "Fine. I won't talk about it. _This time_."

"I'm sorry, but I have to go now," I said, glancing at my watch. I'd been in here for over half an hour. "I'll call you back later. Unless you're going to start whining about your stupid bodyguards again," I added warningly.

"Why are you so stubborn, Rose?" he sighed. "Anyway, have fun."

"Thanks."

I got up and walked out of the bathroom. Dimitri was sitting on his bed, but instead of reading he was just staring at the wall.

"Umm, Dimitri?" I said, waving my hand awkwardly in front of him.

His head snapped up and he blinked. "Oh, you're back," he said, clearing his throat.

I nodded. "I'm sorry it took so long."

"It's fine," he said, getting up. "So… You ready to leave?"

"Yes, let's go," I said as I followed him out of our room.

**DPOV**

I let out a heavy sigh as I looked back at where Rose was sitting on a bench. I was waiting in line for ice creams and from here, I had a perfect view to watch her. I kept telling myself I was just watching her because I had to keep an eye on her and see if nobody was bothering her, but I knew I was only watching her because I wanted to and not because of my job.

I groaned inwardly and turned away from her. I hadn't slept at all last night. I'd kept thinking about what had happened yesterday. About how I'd almost kissed her and when I'd walked in on her in the bathroom… It was frustrating and I wanted it to get out of my head. I wanted _her_ to get out of my head. I didn't want to feel this way about her.

But…was that true? I couldn't give it much thought right now, because it was finally my turn. Rose was still sitting in the same spot when I got back with our ice creams. She didn't look so happy as usual. I wondered if it was my fault.

I'd been acting strange all day. I was trying to keep my distance – and failed sometimes – and I wondered if that was a good idea. I'd become a good friend to her and now I was acting all weird and she probably thought she'd done something wrong while she hadn't at all. It was my fault I was acting like this, because I couldn't figure out what I was feeling for her. I should just act like I always did around her and try to keep my feelings in check. She shouldn't suffer because I was confused about my feelings for her.

"Hey," I said, nudging her shoulder. "Here's your ice cream."

She gave me a small smile. "Thanks."

I tried to come up with something to tell, something that would make her smile some more, but I didn't know what. So instead, I ate my ice cream in silence.

"Is there something wrong?" she asked after a while. "You've been really quiet. Did I do something or-"

"No," I said quickly. "No, of course not. I just… I didn't sleep well."

"Oh." Rose looked up at me and said, hesitant, "So we're okay?"

"Yes, of course. Why wouldn't we be?"

"I don't know," she said shrugging.

Before I could stop myself, I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and pulled her to my side. "Smile, Roza. I'm not mad at you if that's what you think," I said. "Like I said, I didn't sleep well. I didn't mean to take it out on you."

"You didn't. I was just wondering why you were so quiet," she said, licking her ice cream.

After we'd eaten our ice cream, we went back to the flea market because we hadn't seen everything yet. And Rose wanted to see _everything_. She didn't buy anything, though.

As we walked around the market, I suddenly came across something I knew she would like. She was a few feet away from me, looking at some jewelry. If I was quick, I could buy it without her seeing it.

I'd just tucked it in my pocket when Rose walked back to me. I quickly steered her away from the booth. She looked back so I tried to distract her by dragging her to a candy booth. Like I'd hoped, she forgot all about the other booth when she saw all the candy in front of her.

When we arrived at the hostel later that evening, Rose collapsed onto her bed. "I think I ate too much candy," she moaned.

"Then why are you still eating candy?" I asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Because it's yummy," she said grinning as she popped another gummy bear into her mouth.

I sat down on the edge of her bed. "I've got something for you."

She shot up. "You got something for me? Really?"

I smiled. "Yes."

"What?" she asked, curious and excited.

My smile grew wider and I took the temporary tattoo out of my pocket. "I saw this at one of the booths and I knew you wanted a tattoo, but you told me your father would kill you if you got one. So I thought you could get a temporary instead."

"Oh my God, Dimitri," she gasped, looking at the tattoo.

"This was the only decent one," I said. "The rest was all kid stuff. Hope you don't mind a butterfly."

"No, not at all," she said grinning. "It's actually really pretty."

I smiled. "I'm glad you like it."

"Thanks, comrade," she said, throwing her arms around me. "When did you even buy this? I was with you the whole time!"

"Not the whole time," I said with a grin as I wrapped my arms around her.

"But why did you buy it? I mean, you didn't have to…"

"I thought it would make you happy," I murmured. And it did. It really did make her happy and seeing her like this… It made me happy, too. Slowly, I pulled away from her. "So, where do you want your tattoo?"

"On my lower back," she said grinning.

I stared at her. "On your lower back?" I repeated, hoping I'd misunderstood her.

"Yes. I've always wanted a tattoo on my lower back."

_You got to be kidding me._ "Umm, you want to do it yourself?" I asked, hoping she'd say yes.

"Hell no. I'd probably ruin it. You do it," Rose said.

She lay down on her stomach and lifted her shirt a little. "Is that far enough?" she asked.

"Yes," I said quickly before she started taking off her shirt completely. I didn't think I would be able to handle that. "Um, I'm going to get a washcloth. Be right back."

I closed the bathroom door behind me and rested my head against it, letting out a heavy sigh. What had I gotten myself into? Why did I buy that tattoo? Why did she want it on her lower back? Why couldn't it have been on her shoulder or her arm?

I took a deep breath before returning to Rose with a damp washcloth. She was still lying in the same spot I'd left her. Her head was resting on her arms as she stared at the wall. I looked down at her, trying to figure out how I was going to do this.

"What's taking you so long?" she asked.

"Nothing," I mumbled. I cursed myself in silence before I placed my knees on either side of her legs and leaned over her. "Stay still."

I peeled off the plastic surface protecting the tattoo and then placed the tattoo on her lower back. Next, I firmly pressed the damp washcloth against the tattoo. I felt a jolt of electricity when my fingers touched her skin. Goddammit, this was driving me crazy. This woman was driving me crazy. And she didn't even realize it.

I counted the seconds in my head until I thought it was time to take the washcloth off. Slowly, I started peeling the paper away and took a look at the tattoo. It looked good so I continued to peel the paper off.

"Did it work?" Rose asked.

"Yes, but don't move yet," I said quickly. "It needs to dry first."

"Seriously? How long will that take?" she said.

I didn't know, but I wasn't going to keep sitting here like this. I hesitated for a moment and then continued to lean over her, my face almost level with her ass. I closed my eyes for a second and took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. _Come on, Dimitri, you can do this. Just don't look down at her ass and you'll be fine._

I leaned closer to her, gently blowing on her skin, hoping the tattoo would dry faster like this. Rose stiffened and I stopped for a second.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm making it dry faster," I said, a little nervous.

"Oh. Okay," she said, like it was no big deal. Like it wasn't affecting her as much as it was affecting me. Maybe it really didn't affect her. Maybe it was just me.

I swallowed heavily and leaned over her again. Who would've thought I would ever get into a situation like this? If I'd known, I would have never bought the damn tattoo. It was already hard enough, just being around Rose, but being so close to her… Doing this… It was excruciating. And it was kind of turning me on. I knew it was wrong, but I couldn't help it. I was sure that, if Mazur knew what I was doing right now, he would kill me.

"I think it's dry now," I said, clearing my throat.

"How does it look?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.

_Sexy as hell. _"It's…umm… It's really beautiful," I responded, my voice a little hoarse.

"Really?" she said as she tried to get a good look at her tattoo.

"Yes, it's beautiful," I repeated as I touched the tattoo.

Rose looked up at me and I couldn't help but stare back at her. I realized I was still leaning over her, but I couldn't move. I didn't _want_ to move. She half turned around, giving me a questioning look. A voice inside my head told me I should get up, but I ignored it. Instead, I did what I'd been dying to do since last night.

I kissed her. She was caught off guard, but kissed me back. _Oh my God, she's kissing me back!_ She rolled over onto her back and wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me closer.

"Roza," I whispered breathlessly before attaching my lips to hers again.

My tongue traced her lower lip and her lips parted, granting me entrance. She moaned softly as my tongue caressed hers. Slowly, I moved my hands up and down her sides as our lips continued to move in sync. I pressed myself closer to her, never breaking the kiss, and tangled one of my hands in her hair. This was even better than I dreamed it would be.

"Dimitri," she moaned, pulling me even closer.

My eyes shot open when I suddenly realized what I was doing. I abruptly pulled away from her and sat up, trying to catch my breath.

"Dimitri? What's wrong?" Rose asked, looking confused.

I looked at her, my eyes wide in shock. Oh God… What had I done?

"I'm sorry," I said, my voice hoarse. "I shouldn't have done that."

She frowned. "But…"

I got up from the bed and started pacing the floor. Shit. Shit. Shit. I'd crossed the line. If Mazur would ever find out about this…

"I don't understand," Rose said. "Just two minutes ago you were fine and now-"

"Rose, that can't happen again," I interrupted.

Her eyes flashed in anger. "Why not? I don't know if you realize it, but _you_ kissed _me_."

"I know, but I shouldn't have done that," I said, uneasy. "It… It was a mistake."

I'd definitely said the wrong thing. If she hadn't been angry already, she certainly was now. She shot up and strode toward me.

"A mistake?!" she exclaimed. "Why? Because I'm younger than you?"

I hadn't even really thought about that. The only thing I'd thought about was that she was my boss's daughter and that when I'd bring her back to him, she would hate me forever.

"Rose," I started.

"I don't understand you!" she said angrily. "One moment you're all sweet and you do nice things for me and the next you are distant and barely even talk to me! What's up with that?"

"Roza, please…" I didn't know what to say to her. The only thing I could do was apologize, but I knew that wasn't enough. If only I could explain why nothing could happen between us. But if she knew… If she knew the truth, she would hate me forever. "I don't want things to get complicated. It's better if we just stay friends."

"You should've thought about that before you kissed me!"

I looked down. She was right and she had every right to be angry at me right now.

She sighed. "Why did you even want to come with me in the first place? If you don't like me, then why-"

"I do like you," I said quickly. "But not like that. I like you as a friend. I was just…caught up in the moment."

She stared at me for a few seconds before shaking her head. "You know what, I don't care anymore."

She turned away from me and I reached out for her arm. She looked up at me, her eyes blazing with anger, and pulled her arm away.

"Rose-"

"Shut up, Dimitri. I don't want to hear it."

Rose crawled into her bed, pulled the covers over her and rolled onto her side, away from me. I returned to my bed and sat down on the edge, burying my face in my hands.

"Dimitri?" Rose said in a muffled voice.

"Yes?" I said, hopeful.

"Turn off the lights, please," she said curtly. "I'm trying to sleep."

I sighed and turned off the lights before sitting back down on my bed. I stared at Rose's back for a while, hoping she'd turn around and talk to me, but she didn't. I sighed again, realizing I'd really fucked things up and now I was going to have to pay for it.

* * *

**Don't hate me! Please :P And hey, you got a kiss so it's at least something :D And they'll make up soon enough. All my stories have a HEA so don't worry ****;)**

******Hope you have a nice day/evening! :) **


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you for the reviews! :)**

**Guests - I can't reply to your reviews so I'm saying it here: thank you! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 12**

**RPOV**

"Are you still mad at me, Roza?"

I sighed, frustrated, and looked out of the window so I didn't have to look at Dimitri. He was sitting across from me, but it was still too close. If we weren't on a moving train right now, I'd run away from him.

"Roza?"

"What?" I snapped.

"Please don't be mad at me," he whispered. "I'm really sorry about what happened and-"

"Yeah, yeah," I said, rolling my eyes. "I've heard it the first time, you know. You don't have to keep repeating it."

I glanced at my watch. Still one hour to go and I'd be free of him. I would finally be able to mope around about the fact that he'd rejected me. And I didn't even understand why. I mean, he kissed _me_. It wasn't like I had been the one to start it.

He'd given me mixed signals the whole time we'd been together and last night, when he'd kissed me, I'd thought he was feeling the same way. But then, suddenly, he'd changed his mind and said we should just stay friends. Then why had he kissed me in the first place if he only wanted to be friends?!

And he didn't even give me a decent explanation for his odd behavior. Maybe if he'd explained why, I could've understand, but now? No, now I was just pissed at him. And hurt. Not that I was going to admit that to him. He didn't need to know how much this was affecting me.

"So," I said, when we finally arrived at our destination. "I guess I'll see you around. Or not." I shrugged. "Goodbye, Dimitri."

"Hey!" Dimitri reached out for my arm and pulled me back. "What are you talking about?"

"What?" I said, taking a step back. "You didn't think we'd be sticking together after…after what happened, right?" He didn't say anything. "Seriously?" I exclaimed. "You thought that we-"

"Rose, I can't let you go alone," he said firmly.

"Goddammit, Dimitri! I can manage on my own," I snapped. "You don't have to save me every time!"

"I'm not trying to save you," he said. "I just…" He sighed. "I know you want to be independent and I get that, but…being alone in such a big city… It's not smart. Something could happen to you and nobody would know. Nobody would be able to help you so please…let me come with you." He took a step closer to me and said, hesitant, "I know you don't like me very much right now, but… I do care about you, Rose. You're my friend and I don't want you to get hurt."

I didn't want to admit it, but I didn't really want to part ways with him. He might not like me the way I liked him, but he was my friend. He was my only friend here, in this unfamiliar place.

And maybe I shouldn't be so mad at him. I mean, it wasn't like I was in love with him – at least, I thought I wasn't – so maybe…maybe I should just let it go and move on. _Like it's that easy_, I thought bitterly. But the least I could do was try.

"Fine," I said sighing.

He looked relieved. "Thank you."

"Whatever," I muttered and I turned to leave the train station.I didn't understand why he wanted to stay with me so badly. I mean, he made it clear he wasn't interested in me, but still…he didn't want to leave. This guy was really confusing. I wondered if all Russians were like that or if it was just him. Or maybe guys in general were confusing. I didn't know.

"I want to go camping," I announced as we walked next to each other on the sidewalk toward – well, I had no clue where we were going actually.

"Camping?" Dimitri repeated frowning.

"Yes. It's on my list, remember?" I said. "I heard the forests in Germany are very beautiful. We should buy us some tents and then find a way to-"

"Wait, you want to go camping _tonight_?" he interrupted.

"Yes. You got a problem with that?" I asked. I tried to raise one eyebrow, just the way Dimitri always did, but failed.

"No," he responded quickly.

"Well, then. Let's go."

We went to buy food and our camping gear and as we paid for our stuff, I asked the salesclerk where the good camping spots were. He took a map and drew a line on it with a pencil while telling us which route to take.

"Just follow the line and you'll be fine," he said as he handed us the map. "It's a great camping spot. You'll love it."

"Okay. Thank you very much for your help," I said smiling.

We rented a car and then we drove toward the camping spot. It was not far away from Berlin, which was good. If I got bored in the forest, I could come back to the city in no time. Dimitri and I didn't speak to each other on the way there. I noticed him glancing at me a few times, but he never said a word.

"Wow, it's really beautiful here," I said as I hopped out of the car and gaped at all the greenery around us.

I grinned when I noticed the lake. I'd definitely be taking a swim before we'd leave this place. I turned back around and looked up at the trees. They were so tall I could barely see the tops. I could hear birds sing, but other than that, it was quiet. It was perfect.

I walked back to the car and helped Dimitri unload the trunk. We set up our tents – well, Dimitri set up his tent and I fumbled with mine until he came to help me. I chased him away at first. I didn't want his help, but after another half an hour I called him back reluctantly.

Later that night, Dimitri started a campfire and we sat around it, toasting marshmallows for dinner. I'd bought chocolate and crackers so we could make S'mores.

It was really cozy, but something bothered me. Maybe it was the fact that Dimitri and I didn't act around each other like we used to. I wondered if it would stay this way from now on or if we'd get back to our usual banter.

I knew it was partly my fault, because of the way I'd treated him since our little make out session, but it was his fault, too. He was the one who'd kissed me. He was the one who'd complicated things.

Sighing, I took out my notepad and looked over my list, hoping it would distract me from Dimitri. I crossed 'going camping' off the list. I was about to close my notepad, but then noticed another thing I could cross off: getting a tattoo.

It wasn't a real tattoo, but it was a tattoo nonetheless. And a very beautiful one. I shifted on the grass, remembering how Dimitri had applied the tattoo on my lower back. Just thinking about it sent shivers down my spine.

I glanced at him. He was sitting cross-legged, his elbows loosely resting on his knees. He stared into the fire, a small frown on his face. He looked deep in thought and didn't even notice I was watching him.

I let out another sigh and looked back down at my notepad, crossing 'getting a tattoo' off my list before closing the notepad.

"Maybe we could go hiking tomorrow," I said, clearing my throat.

He blinked and looked up at me. "Yeah, sure," he said quietly.

We continued to sit in silence and it was unbearable. This was just…awkward and uncomfortable. I wanted to go back to the time where we could talk about anything. I wanted my friend back.

"I'm going to go get some sleep," Dimitri said, breaking the silence. "Are you staying here or-"

"No, I'm going, too," I mumbled.

"Okay."

He started putting out the fire and I crawled into my tent. I got into my sleeping bag and curled up into a ball. Now that I wasn't sitting at the fire anymore, I was feeling pretty cold. I hadn't thought about buying some sweaters, because it was summer. I hadn't thought I'd need one, but out here, I could really use one. I didn't think the sleeping bag would be enough to keep me warm.

Sighing, I wrapped my arms around myself and stared into the dark. I kept seeing shadows on the tent wall. I knew there was nobody out there, but still… It was kind of creepy.

I closed my eyes and tried to fall asleep, but I couldn't. I heard the wind blowing through the trees and when I opened my eyes, I saw the shadows on the tent wall again. I sat up, letting out a frustrated sigh. Camping wasn't as fun as I'd thought.

I wondered if Dimitri was already asleep. I kept sitting there for a few moments, thinking if I should go over or stay here. _Oh, screw it_.

I was going over.

**DPOV**

I hated this. I hated the distance between Rose and me. I thought it'd be for the best, but it wasn't. I felt miserable because of it. And it was all my fault. I should've never kissed her. Or maybe I should've never stopped kissing her. And I definitely should've never told her it had been a mistake.

Now she was mad at me and barely even talked to me. I was lucky she tolerated me enough to accompany her. How could I've messed up everything in such a short time?

Suddenly, I heard a rustle. I stiffened and waited. It was probably just an animal, but I'd better check it out. I didn't want anything to happen to Rose. Before I could even get up, though, the flap of the tent opened and Rose crawled inside.

"Are you awake?" she whispered.

I sat up. "Is there something wrong?"

"No, no, everything's fine," she whispered as she moved closer to me. "I just…"

"What?" I asked warily.

She let out a sigh. "I can't sleep," she admitted. "I'm cold and I keep seeing these shadows. I know it's nothing, but it's kind of freaking me out. And…"

She bit her lip and looked down.

"And?" I said, curious about what she'd wanted to say.

"And I'm feeling lonely," she blurted out. "Can I… Can I stay here with you?"

I was glad it was too dark for her to see me clearly, because I was grinning like an idiot right now. "Yeah, sure," I said, trying to keep my voice neutral. "If you want to."

"Thanks," she said softly.

"Where's your sleeping bag? Is it still in your tent?"

She nodded.

"I'll go get it," I said, crawling out of the tent.

When I got back with her sleeping bag, I zipped it together with mine. I crawled into the bag and patted the spot next to me. She looked at me, hesitant, but then climbed in beside me. I wrapped my arms around her shivering body as she pressed herself closer against me.

"Shit, you really are cold," I muttered as I started rubbing her arms to warm her up. "Don't you have a sweater?"

"I guess I forgot to buy one," she said as she buried her face in my neck and wrapped her arms around me. Her nose felt cold against my neck. "God, you're so warm. How come you're so warm and I'm so cold? We bought the same sleeping bags!"

"I don't know. You're not going to be sick, are you?" I asked, suddenly worried. "Are you feeling well?"

"Yes. I'm just cold," she mumbled. "Maybe it's because I'm tired."

"Probably," I said, pulling her closer.

Her arms tightened around me as she whispered, "I'm sorry, Dimitri."

My heart almost stopped. Was she apologizing for what had happened last night? Seriously? It had all been my fault and she had every reason to be angry with me. And now…_she_ was apologizing to _me_?

"Me too, Roza," I whispered. "Me too."

She fell asleep soon afterwards. I looked down at her, a small smile on my face. I couldn't believe she was lying next to me, wrapped up in my arms. I'd never thought that this would make me feel so happy. I could look at her all night and never get bored.

Rose sighed in her sleep and snuggled even closer to me. I smiled and brushed my lips against her forehead. I wanted it to be like this all the time. Just her and me…together. Without all the arguing and fighting. I just wanted to be with her.

Maybe I should talk to her in the morning and tell her what had happened between us hadn't been a mistake. Maybe I should just tell her the truth about how I really felt about her. But then what?

Even if she felt the same way, we still couldn't be together. She was going to find out the truth about me someday. If it wasn't during the trip, she would find out when I'd bring her back to her father after the trip. And then it would hurt her ten times more.

And what about Mazur? I didn't think he'd appreciate it if I hooked up with his daughter. If he found out, I could say goodbye to my paycheck.

But this wasn't about the money anymore. I didn't care about the money anymore. I wasn't here because I had to do a job. I was here, with Rose, because I wanted to be. I wasn't protecting her anymore because Mazur had told me to; I was protecting her because I cared about her and I didn't want anything to happen to her.

In barely two weeks' time, Rose had become one of the most important people in my life. She meant a lot to me and she didn't even know it. I sighed, stroking her hair lightly. If only I could tell her how I really felt about her…

I must've fallen asleep, because when I opened my eyes again, it was light outside. And Rose wasn't lying next to me anymore.

I immediately got out of the sleeping bag, wide awake, and crawled out of the tent. I looked around and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw her. I blinked a couple of times to make sure I wasn't dreaming, but no… There she was, stripping naked at the lake.

I stared at her for a moment, my mouth hanging open, before coming to my senses. I knew I should probably get back into the tent and wait until she came back – fully clothed.

But I couldn't just let her swim naked in the lake. She'd already been freezing last night. If she really was starting to get sick, she shouldn't be swimming naked in a lake. And someone could walk by and see her. I didn't want anyone to see her like _that_.

Cursing under my breath, I crawled back into the tent and looked into my duffel bag for a towel. But I didn't have one. Of course. Why would I need one when I could use one from the hotel? Too bad we weren't in a hotel right now so Rose could get into a shower instead of bathing in a damn lake.

Still cursing, I took one of my shirts and then marched out of the tent, toward Rose. She was already in the water.

"Rose!"

She turned around, startled. I was so glad the not so clear water was covering her body. I really didn't need her to distract me right now. I just needed her to get out of the water. When she saw me, she waved and smiled.

"Rose! What do you think you're doing?" I exclaimed when I got closer.

She frowned. "Nothing. I was just-"

"You're going to get sick like this!" I said. "It might be summer, but that doesn't mean you can swim naked in a lake! There are no towels to dry yourself. Couldn't you just wait until we got back to the city?"

"Relax, comrade, I'm just taking a swim," she said grinning. "I'll get out soon."

"If I remember correctly, you were freezing last night. So I don't think swimming is good for you right now," I chastised. "Besides, someone could see you! Or do you want everyone to see you naked?"

"Of course not," she said frowning. "But no one's here."

"_I_ am!"

She shrugged. "You already saw me naked, comrade. And if you don't want to see me naked again, you should turn around and leave."

I scowled. "I wish I could, but I don't want you to get ill. So please, Rose, get out of the water."

"Seriously?" she exclaimed. "You can't tell me what to do."

"God, Rose," I said, frustrated. "Don't be so stubborn. I'm doing this for your own good. For all we know, that water is contaminated and you're taking a swim in it!"

Rose rolled her eyes. "You're exaggerating, but fine…have it your way."

She swam toward me and got out of the water. I quickly shut my eyes and held the shirt out in front of me.

"Dry yourself off with this," I said, "and get dressed."

I felt her take the shirt from my hands.

"Are you gay?"

That question startled me so much I opened my eyes and got a full view of her chest. My eyes widened and she smirked at me. _Damn it!_

Instead of closing my eyes again, I turned away from her. I figured that was safer. "I'm not gay," I said gruffly. "I'm just being respectful."

"Well, most men wouldn't close their eyes when there's a naked woman standing in front of them," she said.

"Don't you have any self-respect?" I snapped. "Or are you used to this? Stripping naked in front of men and-"

"I'm not a slut if that's what you think!" she interrupted angrily.

Shit. I hadn't wanted to let it come out like that. "That's not what I-" I sighed. "I wasn't implying that you're…that you're a slut," I said quietly.

She didn't respond and continued to dry herself off.

"Are you dressed?" I asked after a few minutes.

"Yes," she said curtly.

I turned back around and she shoved the shirt into my chest.

"And for your information, I'm a virgin," she said before walking off.

I sighed, cursing myself for being such an idiot. We'd finally made up last night when she'd crawled into my tent and now I'd ruined it again. And I knew that this time it was going to take a lot more than an apology to make it right.

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**Things seemed to be going a little bit better for a while, but now it's ruined again. How's Dimitri going to make it up to her now? ****I hoped you liked the chapter. Please let me know in a review what your thoughts are about it ;)**

**I probably won't be updating before Christmas again so I wish you all a Merry Christmas! :D**

**Have a nice day/evening! ;)**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you for your reviews! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 13**

**RPOV**

I sat in the car and waited for Dimitri as he put all of our stuff back into the trunk. It looked like it would take him another while because there was still one tent up so I let the tears I'd been holding back fall down my cheeks.

Everything had seemed all right again, when I'd crept into the sleeping bag with him last night. We'd apologized and made up. I hadn't expected it would get ruined again so quickly.

And now it was ten times worse. I'd felt bad when he'd rejected me after our kiss, but now… I felt miserable. I didn't want him to think I was a slut. I wasn't one. Not at all. I'd only kissed two guys in my entire life. One had been a drunken kiss on one of the few parties I'd been allowed to go to and the second one had been with Dimitri.

There had been other guys who'd tried to get me into their beds, but they didn't respect women. They didn't respect _me_. So that's why I'd always said no.

Dimitri did respect me. Other than my family and Christian, he was the only guy that treated me with respect. He was the only guy I've ever wanted to be with, but he didn't want me back.

Last night, when he'd wrapped me up in his arms, I'd thought that maybe it wasn't true what he'd told me after our kiss. I'd thought that maybe he just wasn't ready to admit how he felt about me. Earlier, at the lake, I'd hoped I'd be able to make him admit his feelings for me. I wasn't afraid of him seeing me naked, because I knew he respected me. I knew he'd never take advantage of me. I'd been hoping that this way I'd see some sort of sign that he liked me back, but nothing…

I guess I'd been wrong about his feelings. He didn't want me and he never would want me. He probably thought of me as one of his sisters. He'd once told me I was a lot like his younger sister, Viktoria. So yeah, I was probably like a sister to him.

Suddenly, the car door opened and I quickly straightened up, wiping the tears from my cheeks. Dimitri got in and gripped the steering wheel, staring ahead of him. I looked down at my lap and waited. For what, I didn't know.

"I'm sorry," he said at last. "I… I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."

"It's fine," I responded quietly. "I'm sorry, too."

He looked at me, surprised. "For what?"

"For calling you gay. I know you're not gay. I know you're just being respectful toward me," I mumbled. "There aren't many men out there who are, so… I appreciate it that _you_ are."

He just nodded once and then gunned the engine, driving off. We stayed silent the entire drive back to Berlin. I wondered if he was tired of me, if this time he would leave. I wouldn't blame him if he did, but in all honesty, I didn't want him to leave. He might not feel the same way – and I'd accepted that now – but he was my friend. I didn't want to be without my friend.

We stopped at the first hotel we came across in the city and booked a room. I helped Dimitri carry our stuff to our room and afterwards, he asked me to stay in our room until he came back. I told him I would and waited on one of the beds as he drove the car back to the rental agency. I only believed he would come back because his duffel bag was here.

I was tired of just sitting and waiting so instead I went to the bathroom to take a shower. I had to admit, the shower did me good and it was much warmer than the lake. I took my time to get dressed again and just when I left the bathroom, Dimitri walked into our room.

"Hi," I said softly.

"Hi," he replied. An awkward silence fell and at last, he said, "Do you mind if I take a shower before we go?"

"Sure, go ahead," I said shrugging.

He didn't even so much as glance at me as he walked past me toward the bathroom and closed the door behind him. I sighed and sat back down on the bed.

We didn't do much that day. I didn't feel like doing anything anyway so I didn't really mind. It wasn't until later that day, when we'd returned to our hotel room, I felt like doing something. I wanted to go out, have some fun and forget about all my worries for a while.

"I'm going out," I announced after I'd changed into one of the few dresses I'd bought in Paris.

Dimitri looked up from his book, startled. "Where to?" I shrugged and started for the door, but Dimitri shot up from the bed and stopped in front of me. "Wait, I'm coming with you."

"You don't have to-"

"I'm not going to let you go alone," he said.

"I don't need a babysitter," I said, annoyed.

"I know, but it's safer to stay together."

I shrugged again. "Fine then."

Dimitri never uttered a word as we walked down the streets until I stopped in front of a building. It was crowded outside and music blared from inside.

"Let's go in here," I said, nudging my head at the door.

"When you said you wanted to go out, I didn't realize you wanted to go clubbing," Dimitri said. He didn't look particularly happy.

"You can always go back to the hotel," I suggested.

But he didn't. He followed me inside and went to get our drinks while I sat down at an empty table in one of the corners and waited for him to return. I watched the people on the dance floor and how much they enjoyed themselves. I was eager to join them and have some fun myself.

When Dimitri finally returned, I quickly took a sip of my cocktail before making my way to the dance floor. I remembered Dimitri saying from when we'd first met that he didn't like to dance so, of course, he didn't join me and stayed at the table. I didn't really mind.

I could feel him watching me, though, as I danced to the beat of the music. Suddenly, I felt hands on my hips. I quickly turned around, startled, and looked up at an unfamiliar but cute face.

"Wanna dance?" the guy asked grinning.

I hesitated for a second, but then nodded. I didn't know if it was such a great idea to dance with a guy I didn't know at all, but it was just dancing after all. Besides, I was tired of dancing all alone.

"What's your name?" he asked as he put his hands on my hips again and pulled me closer.

"Rose. And yours?" I asked.

His green eyes stared into mine. "Adrian. It's nice to meet you, Rose," he murmured in my ear. He pulled back slightly and flashed me another smile. I had to admit, he was really cute. His brown hair was stylishly messy and those eyes… They were beautiful. _But not as beautiful as Dimitri's eyes_, a voice inside my head said.

I suppressed a sigh. I really should stop thinking about Dimitri. He wasn't interested in me and he never would be. Adrian, on the other hand, did seem interested at me. Maybe he could distract me from Dimitri for a while. Hopefully.

I smiled up at Adrian. "It's nice to meet you, too."

**DPOV**

I clenched my jaw as I watched Rose dance with some guy. They seemed to be getting on pretty well, even though they only knew each other for about ten minutes. It seemed like Rose was laughing with every word he said. I hated that he could make her laugh so much. I used to make her laugh, too. And now… Now I only made her sad.

I sighed and looked away, downing the rest of my drink. When I looked up again, the guy had gripped Roza's hips and had pulled her flush against him. I felt a spark of jealousy when she wrapped her arms around his neck.

_Dammit!_ I couldn't watch this anymore. I didn't want that guy to touch her anymore. I didn't even want him to look at her anymore.

I shook my head slightly. I'd never been so jealous before in my entire life. And they weren't even kissing or anything. They were just dancing. But even that was unbearable to watch. I needed to do something about it.

Slamming my glass down on the table, I got up and walked up to them. Rose noticed me and stopped dancing. The guy didn't even notice something was going on until I pulled Rose out of his arms.

"Dimitri," Rose started.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" the guy said frowning.

"It's my turn now," I said.

He opened his mouth to protest, but I glared at him and he backed off.

"What the hell, Dimitri?!" Rose exclaimed. "What was that all about?" I reached for her hand, but she pulled away. "Adrian's a nice guy. Why were you so rude to him? Why did you-"

"I don't like him," I said gruffly.

"You don't even know him!"

"Neither do you," I shot back.

"So you thought you should intervene and ruin my night?" she said, raising her eyebrows.

"No, I just…" I sighed and held out my hand. "Will you please dance with me, Roza?"

She crossed her arms and just looked at me. Just then, a slow song started to play. I frowned. When was the last time they played a slow song at a club? Someone must've requested it.

"_Please_?" I said pleadingly.

Rose sighed and slid her hand into mine. I smiled, relieved, and pulled her closer before placing my hands on her waist.

"I thought you didn't dance," she said as she put her hands on my shoulders.

"I thought so too," I said as I twirled her around, "but for you, I'm making an exception."

Her eyes bore into mine and I stared right back into her eyes until she finally looked away.

"You're so confusing sometimes," she said, letting out another sigh.

"I know," I said softly. "I'm sorry."

Rose gave me a small smile and rested her head on my chest. I smiled and pulled her even closer to me as she wrapped her arms around my neck. Neither of us said another word as we continued to dance. I never wanted this song to end; I wanted to hold her in my arms forever.

I sighed in contentment and buried my face in her hair as her arms tightened around my neck. I smiled and closed my eyes, enjoying being so close to her. I knew I shouldn't, I knew I was only going to get in trouble, but I couldn't help myself. I pressed my lips against her neck.

Suddenly, she pulled away from me, an incredulous look on her face, and in that moment I truly realized what I'd done. I'd let myself get caught up in the moment _again_.

"Roza, I-"

"Don't," she warned, pointing a finger at me. "Don't even think about explaining. I'm tired of your explanations." I wanted to protest, but I thought it was better to keep my mouth shut this time. "You keep telling me you don't like me, but your actions tell me otherwise. Or are you just toying with me?"

"No, Roza," I said hastily. "I swear I'm not-"

"Do you think it's fun? Toying with people's feelings?"

I grabbed her hands and looked at her pleadingly. "No, Roza. Of course not. I – I just-"

"Whatever. I don't want to hear it," she interrupted, turning away from me. "Just leave me alone."

She stormed away, leaving me alone on the middle of the dance floor just as the song ended. I cursed loudly and noticed the guy she'd been dancing with earlier smirking at me. I turned away from him and ran after Rose.

To my relief, I saw her walking into the direction of our hotel. I let her walk ahead of me so she could cool off and so I'd have time to figure out what I was going to say to her.

I walked up the stairs to our hotel room and saw that the door was still open. She'd probably expected I was coming after her. I walked in and closed the door behind me quietly.

Rose was standing at the window. I knew she'd heard me come in, but she didn't turn around. Instead, she kept gazing out of the window.

"Why did you do that?" she said at last, her voice trembling. She turned around and her eyes flashed in anger as she looked at me. "He was a nice guy and he liked me and you chased him away! And then, that stupid little act!" she scoffed. "What were you trying to accomplish with that? Did you want to show him that I belong to you? Well, I don't!"

"It wasn't an act," I said. I wasn't yelling like her, but I'd said it loud enough for her to hear. "I wasn't… I didn't do that to show him-"

She didn't let me speak. "Oh, that's right," she said angrily. "You just did that to toy with my feelings. Just like you're always doing!"

"No, Rose!" I said, my voice getting louder. "I would never do that. I'm just…"

"Just what?" she spat. "Why did you behave like that at the club?"

"Isn't that obvious?" I exclaimed. I was starting to lose my patience. If she kept interrupting me, I would never be able to say it. And I needed to say it this time or else I'd lose her. "I was jealous!"

Rose opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it again. She frowned and looked at me in confusion.

"I was jealous," I repeated, calmer this time.

Her frown deepened. "Jealous? But why? You don't even like me. I mean, not like…not like that, you know," she added in a mumble.

"That's what I told you," I said, avoiding her gaze, "but that doesn't mean it's true."

"Then what does it mean?" she asked. I looked up at her and she sighed. "I don't understand this anymore. I-"

"It means that I have feelings for you," I interrupted her quietly. "And I never thought that kissing you was a mistake."

"Then why did you say that?"

_Because of my job, because your father will probably castrate me if he finds out about this, because of so many reasons I can't tell you… _

"Because I'm stupid," I said lamely. She raised her eyebrows at me and I realized I would have to do better than that. "I've been attracted to you since the moment we met and my feelings for you have only grown stronger since then," I said, taking a step closer to her. I sighed and reached for her hand, taking it into mine. "What I feel for you… I've never felt that way about anyone before and it scares me. It's why I tried to keep you at a distance, but I keep failing."

It was only partly the truth, but I couldn't tell her I also kept her at a distance because I wasn't supposed to fall in love with my boss's daughter.

"And when I saw you with that guy earlier…" I shook my head and sighed again. "It was driving me insane. Seeing you with him… It made me so jealous and I realized I don't want to pretend anymore. I don't want to keep my distance from you anymore."

Rose didn't say anything. She just looked at me, stunned.

"I'm so sorry, Roza," I said softly. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You mean all that?" she asked hesitantly. "You…you have feelings for me?"

I nodded and took another step closer. "I care about you, Roza. A lot."

She looked at me for a moment and then, suddenly, she threw her arms around me and kissed me fiercely. I was stunned for a second, but then kissed her back with just as much passion. I felt her smile against my lips as I picked her up and carried her to her bed. I put her down and gently pushed her down onto the mattress without breaking the kiss.

This time, I wouldn't be the one to pull away.

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**I hope you liked the chapter! Also, who would like a lemon next chapter? ;)**

**Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	14. Chapter 14

**Thank you all so much for your reviews! :) **

**!WARNING!:**** This chapter contains a M rated scene and it starts right at the start of this chapter so if you feel uncomfortable reading lemons, you should skip until you see "END M SCENE". **

**Some people didn't want a lemon yet and I get why. It _is_ early, but they are living in the now and not thinking about the consequences. And it adds to the drama when Rose finds out the truth. So hope you guys won't mind :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 14**

**RPOV**

**- START M SCENE - **

"Are you sure about this?"

"Yes," I whispered, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"You've been drinking tonight and I don't want to take advantage of you," Dimitri murmured as he gazed into my eyes. "Maybe we should wait."

"No," I said, pressing my lips against his. "I'm not saying I want this because I'm drunk. I'm not."

He rested his forehead against mine. "But-"

"Dimitri, I want this," I interrupted him gently. "I want you."

We'd been making out for the past half hour and things had escalated rather quickly. But I didn't mind. I wanted to be with him and I didn't want to wait any longer or I might chicken out. I didn't want to chicken out.

We were both naked – well, almost. Dimitri was still wearing his boxers. I'd already hinted he should take them off, but he kept saying he didn't want to push me into having sex with him. He wanted to wait until I was sure. But I already was sure. I wanted him to be my first.

Dimitri sighed and pressed his lips against mine. Slowly, he moved his lips down to my neck and I moaned when he found my soft spot and sucked on it.

My hands tangled in his hair as his lips continued to move lower and lower, kissing every inch of my skin. I let out another moan and arched my back as he kissed down my chest.

"You're so beautiful, Roza," Dimitri murmured, stroking my side. He moved up again and captured my lips with his. His tongue brushed against mine as our lips continued to move in sync. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever met in my life," he said when he pulled away. "No one compares to your beauty."

I cupped his face in my hands and brought my lips to his. He kissed me back fiercely and tangled his hand in my hair. Slowly, I slid my hands down his chest and he groaned against my lips. My hands moved to the waistband of his boxers and he let me take them off.

I threw his boxers onto the heap of clothes on the floor as he hovered over me again, moving his lips against mine. I could feel his erection press against my thigh as he pressed himself closer to me.

Suddenly, he pulled away and said, "Wait, I can't." He bit his lip and muttered something in Russian. It sounded a lot like a curse. "I don't have any condoms," he said at last.

I pulled him closer again. "I'm on birth control."

He looked relieved at that. "Oh. Good."

"Make me yours," I whispered against his lips.

Dimitri lowered himself on top of me and planted a light kiss on my lips before slowly easing himself inside of me. I let out a small gasp and he stopped.

"Are you okay?" he asked, worried.

I nodded and kissed his lips. "Don't stop," I whispered.

Gently, he started to move inside of me. It hurt a little at first, but the pain faded quickly. Gingerly, I wrapped my legs around his waist and lifted my hips to meet his thrusts. His lips found mine again and he kissed me passionately.

When Dimitri was sure he wasn't hurting me, he picked up the rhythm. I tried to hold back my moans, but that was impossible. I moaned out his name loudly, grasping his shoulders firmly, as we continued to rock our bodies against each other.

When I reached my peak, I cried out his name, my nails digging into his back. Seconds later, Dimitri reached his own climax and released inside of me. He rested his head in the crook of my neck and pressed his lips against my neck. I wrapped my arms around him and closed my eyes, trying to catch my breath.

Dimitri lifted his head and pressed a kiss to my lips before rolling off of me. As he lay next to me onto the bed, he pulled me to his side and kissed me tenderly.

"That was amazing," I breathed.

He smiled. "Yes, it was." He kissed me again. "You okay?"

I nodded. "I'm great."

**- END M SCENE - **

His smile widened and he lifted his hand to stroke my cheek. "I wish I'd told you sooner how I feel about you," he said softly.

"Me too," I murmured.

"I'm glad I finally did."

I smiled. "So am I."

We lay together in silence after that, gazing at each other. Every few moments, he leaned in to kiss me as he stroked my hair gently.

After a while, my eyes started to droop. Dimitri pulled the covers over us and pulled me into his chest, wrapping his arms tightly around me. I felt him kiss my forehead before I drifted off into a blissful sleep.

**DPOV**

When I woke up the next morning, Roza was safely wrapped up in my arms. She was still asleep, a small smile playing on her lips.

I knew I should feel guilty for what I'd done, but I didn't. Right now, I was too happy to feel guilty. I knew this happy feeling wasn't going to last, though. And neither would Rose and I.

I'd only made things even more complicated by telling her the truth about my feelings, but I didn't regret it. We would be fine now, but once she'd go back to her father… It was inevitable that she'd find out the truth about me. If it wasn't today or tomorrow, it would definitely be when I brought her back to her father. And then, what we had right now, it would be over.

I let out a sigh. I'd always thought that convincing Rose to let me join her on her trip would be the hardest part, but I was wrong. The hardest part was yet to come. The day I would have to drop her off at her house, the day she would find out the truth and realize I was nothing more than a liar… It would crush her. And I knew it would crush me, too.

The thought of her hating me made me feel miserable. I didn't want her to hate me. But I knew she would and I couldn't blame her, really. But after last night, it would be so much harder to lose her.

Suddenly, Rose stirred in my arms and her eyes opened slowly. She looked up at me, a smile spreading across her face, and my heart skipped a beat. I forgot all about my worries as I looked into her eyes.

"Good morning," I said softly, brushing my lips against hers.

Her smile widened. "Good morning, comrade."

I smiled back and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling wonderful," she responded, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"Good," I said. "So you…you don't have any regrets? About last night?" I added hesitantly.

"Hell no," she whispered grinning.

I grinned, too, and leaned in to kiss her. Her arms tightened around my neck and she pulled me closer. I moved on top of her and pressed my lips against hers again. Gently, I bit down on her lower lip, which caused her to moan. She parted her lips and I brushed my tongue against hers.

Suddenly, her stomach growled loudly. I stopped kissing her and she started laughing against my lips. I pulled away, chuckling.

"I think we should get you something to eat," I said, cupping her face and pecking her on the lips.

She nodded, still smiling, and I rolled off of her with great reluctance. I'd rather stay here with her all day and make love to her, but she was hungry and I had to admit, so was I.

We got ready and as we left our room, I reached out for her hand. I was relieved when she didn't pull away from me. Instead, she looked up at me and smiled. Feeling more confident, I laced our fingers together and brought our hands up to kiss her knuckles.

"Where do you want to go today?" I asked after we'd had our breakfast.

"I've read something about a river cruise," she said, taking a pamphlet out of her purse. "It might be fun." She scanned the pamphlet and exclaimed, "Oh, they also got snacks on board."

I laughed. "Roza, didn't you just eat?"

She shrugged. "Let's get going, comrade," she said as she pulled me along. "We still have lots to see!"

Today turned out to be the best day ever. I'd loved spending time with Rose and following her to wherever she wanted to go, but now it was ten times better. I didn't have to stop myself anymore from reaching out and holding her hand. Now, I got to kiss her and hold her in my arms whenever I wanted to. I couldn't wish for anything more.

The Spree River cruise was enjoyable. Just seeing Rose smile as she took in the sights, made my heart swell. I knew I was supposed to take pictures of the architecture in Berlin, but I rather took pictures of her. When all this was over, I would at least have some pictures to look back at when I missed her.

After the cruise, we went to the Alte National Gallery, which held artwork by Manet, Monet and Renoir. Much to my shock and chagrin, we ran into the guy from the club. He recognized us and waved, a broad smile on his face.

_Please turn around and leave. Don't come over._ I groaned inwardly when he didn't turn around and left with his friends, but came walking right toward us.

"Rose!" he said cheerfully, not even sparing a glance at me. "I didn't think I'd see you back!"

Rose glanced at me briefly. "Hi Adrian," she said politely.

He started talking rapidly about something and I lost interest pretty quickly. I glanced at my watch a few times, hoping he'd get on with whatever the hell he was saying and just leave us alone.

"We should meet up later tonight, Rose," Adrian said. "Finish what we started last night," he added, winking. "Without getting interrupted this time, of course."

That caught my attention. "Excuse me?' I said, glaring at him.

"You can come along, too, if you want," he said shrugging. "There are some girls in our group. Maybe you can go with one of them and-"

I started to say something, but Rose cut me off. "I'm sorry, Adrian, but I can't."

He frowned. "Why not?"

"Because she says so!" I snapped.

Rose grabbed my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. The small gesture didn't escape Adrian.

"Oh, I see what's going on here," he said grinning as he looked from Rose to me. "You got the girl." He started to back up slowly. "Well, I guess I should be going. Hope the two of you have nice trip," he said, winking.

He turned around and walked back to his friends.

"Well, that was awkward," Rose said.

"Let's hope we don't run into him again," I grumbled.

"Are you that jealous, comrade?" she teased.

_Yes, I'm afraid I am._

I didn't say anything; I just looked away. I was startled when she grabbed me by the collar and pulled me toward her as she stood on her tiptoes.

"You don't have to be," she whispered before pressing her lips against mine in a passionate kiss. I put my hands on her waist, pulling her closer. All too soon her lips were gone and when I opened my eyes again, she was smiling. "Let's get going now, comrade. We're losing precious time," she said, grabbing my hand.

I nodded, unable to say something. I was still dazed from that kiss. As Roza led me toward the paintings, she talked excitedly about all the things we still had to do and see today. Just like earlier today, on that boat, she smiled brightly and my heart lifted again. I wanted to see that smile on her face every day for the rest of my life.

And in that moment, I realized something. I'd actually known it for some time now, but I'd never wanted to admit it to myself. I couldn't deny it any longer, though.

I was in love with Rose.

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**Hope you all liked it, even though it was a little short. Have a nice day/evening! ;)**


	15. Chapter 15

**HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope you'll all have a wonderful year ;) **

**And t****hank you for the reviews! :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 15**

**RPOV**

I was humming when I got out of the shower later that evening. I don't think I'd ever hummed before. I don't think I'd ever been in such a good mood before, actually. And it was all because of Dimitri. I let out a sigh and smiled dreamily as I thought back of last night's events and how amazing today had been with him. It couldn't get any better than this.

With another sigh, I put my tank top and shorts on and brushed my teeth before leaving the bathroom. I stopped abruptly in the doorway when I noticed the difference in our room and Dimitri looked up at me. He seemed a little nervous.

"You…you shoved our beds together?" I said as I leaned against the door frame.

To my surprise, he started blushing. "Umm, yeah, I thought that'd be okay," he stammered. "I mean, after last night and today, I thought that…" He shrugged helplessly. "But if you don't want to, it's okay. I'll just-"

I smiled and walked over to him. "No, don't separate the beds again. I like it like this."

"Really?" he said, hopeful.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and nodded. "Yes."

We spent the rest of the night watching TV, cuddled up together in bed. Every so often, Dimitri would stroke my hair or kiss my cheek. The whole time, I had a smile on my face.

After the movie had ended, we crawled under the covers and I rolled onto my side to face Dimitri. I rested my hand on the bed and he placed his hand on top of mine. He was smiling.

"I'm glad I met you, Dimitri," I said softly.

"Me too, Roza," he murmured.

He moved closer and wrapped his arms around me. I rested my head on his chest and when I felt him kiss the top of my head, I let out a content sigh. I closed my eyes and after a while, I drifted off to sleep.

When I woke up the next morning, Dimitri was still asleep. His head was resting on my shoulder and one of his arms was draped over my waist. I lay next to him for a while, not wanting to disturb his sleep.

But, suddenly, my phone started ringing. I winced when I heard the noise and quickly removed Dimitri's arm from around me and got out of bed to grab my phone. I didn't want Dimitri to wake up so I padded to the bathroom and closed the door behind me.

"Christian?" I said. "Why are you calling me so early?"

"Early?!" A few seconds passed and then he said, "Oh right. I forgot about the time difference. Sorry."

"It's fine," I said, glancing at the door. "I was awake anyway."

"How are you?" Christian asked. "Are you still traveling with Mr. Tall and Handsome?"

"For the last time, his name is Dimitri," I said firmly. "And yes…" I started smiling. "I'm still traveling with him."

"You sound happy," he remarked. "Did something happen between the two of you?"

I grinned. "Kind of."

"Please continue."

"We had sex," I said, still grinning.

"You – you _what_? You had sex?" he stammered. "With _him_?"

I nodded, then realized he couldn't see me. "Yes, I did. And it was _so_ good," I added to tease him.

"God, Rose," he groaned. "Spare me the details, please!"

"Well, you wanted to know what happened. I just told you," I said shrugging.

"But how?" he exclaimed. "I mean, you didn't want to ask him if he had feelings for you and now, all of a sudden, you're-"

"It's kind of a long story."

"I don't care. Tell me," he demanded.

"Whoa. Take it easy, Chris," I said jokingly.

"I just want to know he likes you for real and didn't take advantage of you," he said, still serious. "Please tell me he likes you back or else I'll come over to Berlin and kick his ass for-"

"Calm down, Christian," I interrupted quickly. "Jeez. There's no need to worry."

"Okay. Then what happened?"

I sighed and decided to give him a short version of everything that had happened since the last time I'd called Christian. "Well, Dimitri kissed me one night, but then he stopped and told me it was a mistake. That he didn't like me like that. We fought for a couple of days until he got jealous of some guy at a club and-"

"Wait. There's another guy involved?" Christian exclaimed.

"No, not really. I was just dancing with him at a club and Dimitri didn't like that very much so we started arguing again and when we were back in our hotel room, he admitted his feelings for me," I finished.

"And then you had sex with him?" he questioned.

"Yes."

"Just like that?"

"Um, yes," I said slowly, wondering where he was going with this.

"Wasn't that a little impulsive?" Christian said hesitantly. "You've barely known him for three weeks."

"So?" I said, a little outraged.

"I don't want to argue with you, Rose. I'm just worried about you,' he said hastily. "That's all."

I sighed. "I know. I'm sorry," I said softly. "It's just…"

"It's just what?" Christian asked when I didn't continue.

I bit my lip. "I think I'm in love with him."

He was quiet for a while. "Wow. That's…well, that's great. I think." He cleared his throat. "As long as you're happy, I'm happy too."

I smiled. "Thanks, Christian."

"You have to promise me one thing, though," he said . "If he hurts you, you have to tell me. I'll come over and kick his ass. I'll kill him with my bare hands and-"

I laughed. "That's very sweet, Chris, but I don't think you can."

"Why not?" He sounded offended.

"Dimitri's really strong. You should see his abs. Man, it's unbelievable how-"

"I do not want to hear about _that_," Christian interrupted me.

"Fine then," I said grinning. "How are things going with Lissa?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Umm, I don't know, to be honest," he said.

I frowned. "What do you mean?"

"I've been avoiding her lately," he admitted.

"Why would you do that?" I said. "You're still into her, aren't you?"

"Yes, but it's never going to work, Rose," he sighed. "She lives across the world. It's better if we-"

"Are you giving up?" I exclaimed.

He let out another sigh. "I don't know."

"You can't give up!" I said firmly. "You'll meet her someday. I'm sure of it."

"Yeah, I guess." He cleared his throat again. "I got to go, Rose. Talk to you later."

"Bye, Chris. And good luck with Lissa," I added quickly.

"Thanks," he said.

I got up and left the bathroom. I noticed Dimitri was just waking up and I joined him on the bed.

"Hi," I said smiling as I leaned over him.

"Hey," he said, returning my smile. He placed his hands on my hips. "Where have you been?"

"Christian called me. I didn't want to wake you up so I went to the bathroom," I answered.

He brushed a strand of hair out of my face. "You look so cute in those shorts," he said, moving his hand down my leg, slowly running it up and down. "But then again, you always look cute." I grinned and leaned down to kiss him. "And sexy," he added when I pulled away.

I laughed out loud this time. "Did you hit your head when you woke up?"

"No," he said as he rolled us over so he was on top of me. I let out a small gasp and he grinned. Slowly, he lowered his head and touched his lips to mine. "I'm being serious."

I smiled. "Well then, thanks for the compliment."

He leaned in and kissed me slowly. After a few minutes, he pulled away, leaving me breathless. He stroked my cheek and smiled down at me fondly before pecking my lips again and getting up. I stayed where I was, staring at his perfect abs.

"Are you going to keep lying there?" he said teasingly as he started to get dressed. "If I remember correctly, you wanted to catch a train to Venice today, right?"

I blinked and sat up. "Right."

We got ready, packed our stuff and checked out of the hotel. We went to get us some lunch before going to the train station. I was kind of dreading to get on the train because it would be a _very_ long train ride to Venice. Spending seventeen hours in a train wasn't really my thing. I was lucky Dimitri was still around. Otherwise I would've been bored out of my mind.

Instead of sitting across from me, Dimitri sat down next to me this time. I smiled as he loosely wrapped his arm around my waist.

We spent the first few hours talking and playing games. I'd been so smart to buy a card game a few days ago so we had something to do on the train, but it wasn't any fun because Dimitri kept winning. At last, he started losing on purpose to make me feel better so I decided to call it quits for today.

"Stupid game," I huffed, crossing my arms.

Dimitri chuckled. "It's just a game, Roza."

"Easy for you to say," I grumbled, still frustrated. "You won every time."

His hand slipped under my shirt and he started to rub my back soothingly. "Don't get so worked up. It's just a game."

"I guess," I mumbled reluctantly.

I felt him lift my shirt a little.

"Your tattoo is fading," he said as his fingers brushed against my skin.

"Oh no," I said in a whiny voice. "I really liked that tattoo."

"We can buy you a new one," he suggested.

"Yeah, maybe," I said.

"Don't you want a new one?" he asked.

I shrugged. "I don't know. It won't be the same one anymore."

"You liked it that much?"

"Yes. Because it was a gift from you," I admitted.

Dimitri smiled and leaned in to kiss me. "I'm curious," he said when he pulled away. "Did you really want the tattoo on your lower back or was it an attempt to drive me crazy?"

"What?" I said, perplexed. "You thought I was trying to drive you crazy?"

"Well, you drove me crazy a lot. You still do," he said grinning.

"Really? And how exactly did I drive you crazy?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"You really have to ask?" he said. "Hmm. Let's see," he said, pretending to think. "When you were swimming in the lake. Naked." I laughed and he shook his head. "Seriously, Roza. I didn't know where to look at!"

"You'd seen me naked before," I said, still laughing.

"Just a flash. Though that was already enough to drive me crazy," he muttered.

I smirked. "I didn't know I affected you so much."

"Now you know, then," he said, lacing our fingers together as he smiled down at me.

When evening fell, we had to change trains in Munich. I decided to get some sleep, because we would arrive around three in the morning in Verona Porta Nuova, where we'd have to catch our train to Venice. The problem was, though, that the next train wouldn't arrive until six in the morning. So, we'd have to wait around for three hours in the middle of the night.

Lucky for me, I fell asleep easily that night. Dimitri woke me up when it was almost time and we gathered our stuff.

"What are we going to do now for the next three hours?" I grumbled.

"Well, now that we're here, we could go do something," Dimitri said shrugging.

"Like what? It's the middle of the night! There's nothing we can do right now. Except sleep, maybe," I added sighing. "Though I don't think it's comfortable to sleep at the train station."

Dimitri reached for my hand and pulled me along. "How about we go take a walk?"

"Fine," I said shrugging.

We ended up at a park, a few miles away from the station. We sat down on one of the benches, admiring the view.

"I've never done this before," I said. "Sitting in a park in the middle of the night. When everyone is sleeping."

"Neither have I," Dimitri said.

"It's so quiet here," I said with a small smile. I knew it was so quiet because we were the only ones crazy enough to come here in the middle of the night. "I like it."

"Me too," Dimitri murmured, wrapping his arm around my shoulder.

When it was five o'clock in the morning, we returned to the train station and waited for our train to arrive. I was exhausted when I finally took a seat in the train. I leaned against Dimitri's shoulder and closed my eyes. And when I opened them again, we'd finally arrived at our destination.

Grinning, I hopped out of the train. "Here I come, Venice!"

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**Even though it was short - again - I hope you liked the chapter. Next chapter we'll hear from Abe again and there will be a Christian POV ;)**

**Hope you have a nice day/evening! :) **


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you for your reviews! :) **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 16**

**DPOV**

We only stayed a couple of days in Venice, visiting all the famous tourist spots, like St. Mark's basilica and Torre dell'Orologio. We'd also gone on a gondola ride, which had been, to my surprise, quite expensive. But that hadn't stopped Rose. She'd been outraged for a moment when she'd heard the price, but she'd been too excited about it to say no and turn back around. Everything in Venice was expensive, anyway.

After those few days, we moved on to Rome. All the while, I kept in touch with Mazur, telling him how Rose was doing, reassuring him she was safe. After every call, I felt so guilty for deceiving Rose. It was worse now that I was in a relationship with her. I didn't know how long I'd be able to go on like this, because the guilt was starting to eat me up.

I knew I should just come clean with her, but I was a coward. I didn't want to lose Rose and I wasn't really looking forward to Mazur's wrath when he'd find out I'd told his daughter about his master plan to keep her safe without her knowing anything about it. Not that I cared so much about what Mazur would think. It was mostly Rose I was worried about.

I knew I would lose her as soon as she knew the truth. She would hate me and I didn't think I'd be able to bear that. I still had a few weeks with her and I wanted to make the most of that time. If I'd tell her now, I wouldn't even get the chance to show her how much she meant to me. And I really wanted Roza to know how I felt about her.

If only I had the guts to tell her I was in love with her. Yes, that's right. I'd fallen in love with my boss's daughter and in less than a month I'd lose her because of my own stupidity to take on this job. But if I hadn't, I would've never met her.

"Oh my God, I can't feel my feet!" Rose groaned when we finally got back to our hotel room.

It was our last day in Rome and we'd walked around the city for nearly eight hours, visiting the Galleria Borghese, St. Peter's square and the Colosseum. Tomorrow, we'd leave for Prague.

Rose plopped down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "Oh, this feels good," she said sighing.

I joined her on the bed and draped my arm over her waist. She rested her hand on my arm and turned her face toward me, smiling. I leaned in and pressed my lips against hers softly. She responded to the kiss eagerly and moved closer, rolling on top of me. One of her hands slipped under my shirt.

"I thought you were tired?" I said, raising an eyebrow.

"Maybe I'm not that tired," she said grinning.

She removed my shirt and hovered over me again. Her hands roamed my chest as she kissed me slowly. I knew I should stop her because she would regret all of this once she knew the truth, but as soon as her lips touched mine, I forgot all about my guilt.

"Roza," I growled before kissing her back passionately.

I rolled us over and pressed my body against hers. She grinned as she slowly slid her hands down my chest, sending shivers down my spine. I leaned in and captured her lips with mine. Her hands moved back up and wrapped around my neck as we continued to kiss.

I pulled away from her lips to help her out of her shirt. I tossed it on the floor and pressed my lips against hers again. Slowly, I moved my lips down to her neck, sucking on her sweet spot. Rose moaned my name and I felt myself harden.

Just when I was about to remove her bra, her phone started ringing. I cursed silently when she sat up to see who was calling her.

"Don't answer it," I murmured, kissing her shoulder.

"I have to," she said sighing. "It's my father."

_Then definitely answer it._

"He'll go mad if I don't answer," she said, biting her lip.

"I know. Talk to him," I said softly, squeezing her hand.

She gave me an apologetic look and answered the call. I sighed and lay back down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling.

The guilt was slowly starting to come back, especially because Rose's father was on the other end of the line and if he knew what we'd been doing just seconds ago… It wouldn't surprise me if he'd send one of his bodyguards to kill me. Or maybe he'd do it himself. I was hooking up with his daughter, after all.

I closed my eyes and let out another sigh. I would be in so much trouble when this trip was over. I wish it'd never have to end.

"Where were we?"

My head snapped up to see Rose grinning as she leaned over me. I hadn't even heard her ending the call. Before I could say something, she pressed her lips against mine again. I was lost in the kiss for a moment, but when her fingers slipped under my waistband, I came to my senses again.

I pulled away from her and said, "Maybe we shouldn't." Rose frowned and sat up. "It's not that I don't want to," I added quickly, "but we've got to get up early tomorrow morning so maybe it's better if we get some sleep now."

She looked at me, still frowning, but then she shrugged. "I guess you're right."

"We can make up for it some other time," I said as I cupped her face and kissed her. _When I don't feel too guilty_, I added silently.

As if that would ever happen. I felt guilty every day and it was only getting worse. I wanted to come clean with her so badly, but I knew I'd lose her if I did. And I didn't want to lose her just yet.

"I'll hold you to that one," Rose said teasingly before she pecked my lips and got up. Taking out her sleep shirt and shorts, she walked over to the bathroom for a shower.

Not even a minute later, my phone rang. I retrieved it from my jeans pocket and put it against my ear without looking at the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Belikov."

I frowned when I recognized that voice. Why would Mazur call me when he'd called his daughter not even five minutes ago?

"Is something wrong?" I asked slowly.

"No, I just wanted to hear from you that Rose is okay," he responded. "Is she okay?"

"Yes, everything is going great," I said truthfully.

"Only three weeks left," Mazur said sighing. "I'll be so glad when she's finally back home."

"Yeah…" I cleared my throat and said, hesitant, "I was wondering…"

"Yes?" he said when I didn't finish my sentence.

I cleared my throat again. "Never mind."

"No, you wanted to say something. Tell me," he urged.

I took a deep breath. "Well, I was thinking… Does Rose need to know about my true identity when we get back? Maybe…maybe we could keep it a secret about me being her bodyguard."

"Why?" Mazur asked slowly. "Did something happen? Do you need to tell me something?"

"No, no," I said quickly. _Shit._ I should've known asking this would be a bad idea. "It's just… We've become friends and it'll hurt her when she finds out I lied – I mean, _we_ lied to her. It's probably better for both of us if she doesn't know."

"So you're suggesting we should lie to her for the rest of her life?"

I sighed. "No."

I'd been thinking about this for a while now. What if she'd never find out that I was hired to keep her safe? We'd be able to be together – if her father allowed it. But even if he did, could I really lie to her for the rest of our lives? _No, you can't_, a voice inside my head said. _She deserves to know the truth._

"Aren't you scared she'll hate you for this?" I asked, knowing this was dangerous territory. I really shouldn't ask these questions. It would only make him suspicious.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure she'll hate me for some time," he said casually. Then he turned more serious. "But she'll realize I only did it to protect her. And because I love her."

He was right. She would definitely be pissed at him for a while, but she would forgive him eventually, because he was her father and he was the only family she'd left. But what about me? Would she be able to forgive me too?

"Dimitri, are you sure everything's alright?" Mazur asked after a few moments of silence. It was the first time he'd called me by my first name.

"Oh, yeah," I responded quickly. "Sure. Everything's alright."

Later that night, I had a hard time falling asleep. I kept worrying about what would happen in three weeks from now. I tossed around for hours, trying to get comfortable. Eventually, I woke Rose up.

"What's going on? Are you alright?" she asked softly.

"I can't sleep," I mumbled. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's fine," she murmured. "How come you can't sleep?"

"I don't know," I lied. "But don't worry about me. Go back to sleep, milaya," I murmured, stroking her hair gently.

"But-"

I silenced her with a kiss. "Shh, just go back to sleep, Roza. We have to get up in a few hours."

Rose nodded and I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against my chest. She was fast asleep again within minutes. Sighing, I pressed my lips against her hair. How much I was going to miss this, just lying in bed with her, my arms wrapped around her. _Don't think about that yet_, I chastised myself. _You still have some time with her._

I let out another sigh and closed my eyes. I listened to her breathing, lulling me to sleep at last.

**CHRISTIAN POV**

"Is Mr. Mazur in his office?" I asked as Alberta let me in.

"No, he's in the kitchen," she responded with a smile.

"Okay. Thanks," I said, smiling back.

I made my way to the kitchen, passing Mason and Eddie. Just when I was about to enter the kitchen, Mason stopped me and I gave him a questioning look.

"I was wondering," he said hesitantly. "Have you heard anything from Rose? Is she doing alright?"

"Yeah, we talked a few times over the phone," I said. "She's doing fine. No need to worry."

Mason looked relieved. "Good," he said. "I'd feel better, though, if I'd been there with her." His eyes widened slightly and he flushed. "I mean, me or one of the other guards, of course."

"Sure," I said smiling.

He gave me a polite nod and walked back toward Eddie. I felt sorry for the guy. He was so in love with Rose and he would never get to be with her. Firstly, Rose didn't love him back. And second, I think Abe would chop off his balls if he moved in on his only daughter.

I was about to open the door, but I stopped when I heard Abe's voice in the kitchen. It wasn't his voice that had stopped me dead in my tracks exactly, but the name he'd spoken.

"Dimitri, are you sure everything's alright?"

_Dimitri._ I didn't need to think twice about where I'd heard that name before. Rose couldn't stop talking about him whenever we were on the phone. But the question was, how did Abe knew Dimitri? Or was it a coincidence? Was it someone else, also named Dimitri?

I opened the door slightly and peeked around the corner. Abe had his back turned toward me and he was talking to someone - to Dimitri - on the phone.

Now, I wouldn't have been worried if I hadn't known Rose was adamant on keeping Dimitri a secret from her father. She hadn't wanted her father to know that she was traveling with someone. Unless she'd suddenly changed her mind and thrusted her phone into her boyfriends' hands so he could have a nice little chat with her father – which I highly doubted.

Something else must be going on and I had a feeling it wasn't something good. I kind of hoped I was wrong and that it was just a coincidence, that it was some other guy who just happened to have the same name.

But then Abe said, "If something is wrong with Rose, call me immediately."

_Crap._ It turns out I was right.

I'd always wondered why Abe had stayed so calm when Rose had left in the middle of the night. Sure, he'd freaked out, but not as much as I'd expected. I'd expected him to send Mikhail after her immediately, but he never did. And now I knew why.

"Christian!" Abe said, clearly startled, when he turned around and saw me standing in the doorway.

"So… Is he doing a good job?" I asked casually as I leaned against the door frame.

He frowned. "I'm not entirely sure if I know what you're talking about," he said slowly.

"I guess he is, because Rose hasn't figured it out yet," I continued as if he hadn't said anything. Abe stayed silent. "I'm talking about Dimitri. The guy you hired to protect Rose on her trip?"

"Christian," he started.

"No. Don't even try to explain," I cut him off. "Do you know how hurt Rose is going to be when she finds out the truth? Not to mention how pissed she'll be at the both of you."

Abe sighed. "I know, but what else was I going to do? She didn't want any of my bodyguards with her and I couldn't possibly let her go alone. You can understand that, right?" he said in a pleading voice.

I was too angry right now to feel sorry for him. I knew he was only trying to protect his daughter, but he had taken it too far this time. Rose would be crushed when she'd find out who Dimitri truly was. Not just because he and her father had been lying and working together behind her back, but she'd actually fallen in love with that guy. It would be ten times worse for her now. I wondered if Dimitri really had feelings for her or if it was just another lie, just an attempt to keep her close.

"How do you even know about Dimitri?" Abe suddenly asked.

"Rose told me about him."

"She did?" he said, sounding surprised.

"Yes! And she really likes him!" I said, barely able to contain my anger. "She thinks he really cares about her. If she finds out the truth, she'll be devastated."

"Does he mean that much to her?" Abe asked. He looked a little shocked. "They've only known each other for a few weeks. It won't matter that much to her, right?"

"Are you kidding me?" I exclaimed. "Of course it'll matter to her!"

"And why is that?" Abe said sharply.

I suddenly remembered he didn't know. He didn't know about Rose's little romance with Dimitri - unless Dimitri had been so stupid to tell his boss he was having sex with his daughter. I was pretty sure that wasn't the case, though.

"Because…because they're friends," I said quickly. I was certainly not going to tell Abe what I knew, because I knew it would get them both in trouble. I didn't mind for Dimitri to get in trouble – he deserved it – but I didn't want Rose to get in trouble, too. "She trusts him." I shook my head and sighed. "How could you do this?"

"Christian, please don't tell her," Abe said, taking a step toward me.

"What? You want me to lie to her, too?!"

"No, you don't have to lie exactly," he said, wringing his hands together. "Just don't tell her what you know."

"Seriously?" I exclaimed. "She's my best friend! How can I keep this from her?"

"You know how impulsive she is," Abe said. "If she finds out, she'll run. I don't want that to happen."

"Me neither, but she deserves to know the truth," I said, crossing my arms.

"I know, but you can't tell her. Not yet."

"Then when should I tell her? When it's too late?" _If it isn't already._

He sighed and looked down, clearly miserable. "Please, Christian. I'm begging you."

"You know she's going to hate our guts, right?" I said crossly. "She'll hate you for lying to her, for hiring someone behind her back. And she'll hate me because I didn't tell her."

He opened his mouth to say something, but I turned around sharply and walked out of the kitchen. Mason and Eddie were gaping at me when I walked past them. They'd probably heard me yelling at their boss – something nobody ever did except for Rose.

I stormed out of the door and climbed into my car, slamming the door shut. Cursing, I punched the steering wheel. I'd like to call Rose right now and tell her what I knew, but Abe was right. She would run as soon as she knew the truth about Dimitri. I didn't want her to run. As much as I hated Dimitri right now for making Rose believe he cares for her, I still wanted him to stay with Rose until she got back. I knew she'd be safe with him. I wasn't keen on her traveling alone, especially not when she was mad and hurt. So, for the sake of Rose's safety, I wouldn't tell her what a bastard Dimitri was. I would keep my mouth shut and pray she wouldn't hate me for this.

I let out a frustrated sigh. Because of all this, I'd kind of forgotten my purpose for coming here tonight. I'd wanted to ask Abe if I could come along when he'd pick Rose up at the airport the day she'd return. I guess I'd better go on my own.

"What a mess," I muttered.

Suddenly, there was a knock on my window. I looked up to see a concerned Eddie standing next to my car. I rolled down my window with a sigh.

"What?" I snapped.

Eddie's eyebrows rose. "I just wanted to check on you. You seemed pretty upset when you-"

"Yes, I am upset," I said, gritting my teeth. "Can you move now? I need to leave."

"What happened?" he asked.

"Why don't you ask your boss," I said curtly.

He opened his mouth to reply, but I didn't want to hear it and started the car. Eddie quickly stepped aside and I sped off, not wanting to be here a second longer.

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**I know most of you were hoping that there would be more about Lissa in Christian's POV. Don't worry, though, she will be in this story, just not yet ;)**

**Anyway, I hope you liked the chapter. Have a nice day/evening! :) **


	17. Chapter 17

**Thank you for your reviews! :)**

**I'd also like to thank the people who nominated Unexpected Love and this story for 'Le Vampire Academy Awards'. Thank you so much, guys! I didn't even know these kind of things were hosted on this site. If you haven't heard about it yet, you should check it out and vote for your favorite story, author, etc. 0o0-Happy-Dagger-0o0 is hosting it. **

**PLEASE**** READ!:** **I'm sorry about the long a/n, but there has been a complaint about the rating of this story, because of some words I used in this story and the lemon. I rated this story T because I don't really write much lemons and they aren't explicit (at least, I don't think so?), but if there are more people who have a problem with this, I'll change it to M. I don't want to get in trouble either and get reported because of this so yeah... Just let me know what your thoughts are. I was going to give you another lemon (next chapter), but I'm not sure anymore. If you want one, I'll write one. If you want me to change the rating to M, I will. Just let me know :)**

**I also tried to update sooner, but something is wrong with this site! I don't know what, but it's really starting to bug me. It's been going on for a few days now and it's always something different. Anyway, here's the chapter. _Finally._** **;)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Academy.**

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**CHAPTER 17**

**DPOV**

"We might have a problem."

I groaned inwardly. "What do you mean?"

"Are you alone?" Mazur asked.

"Yes."

I was currently sitting on the bathroom floor. It was the middle of the night and Rose was lying in bed, sound asleep. I was lucky she hadn't woken up when my phone had started buzzing. When I'd seen it was Mazur calling me, I knew I couldn't ignore the call.

"Where is Rose, then?"

I suppressed a sigh and rubbed my eyes. "Rose is asleep. It's the middle of the night in Prague, you know."

"Oh. Right. I'm sorry. I'm a little confused," Mazur apologized. "I haven't been sleeping well lately. I'm worried about Rose, you know."

_Me neither_, I thought. "She's safe," I replied.

"I know," he said quietly.

I waited for him to say something else, but he didn't. "So…what's the problem?" I asked at last.

"I don't know if Rose has ever told you anything about Christian," he started. "He's her best friend."

"Yeah, she told me about him," I said, wondering what Christian had to do with this. "Why? What's going on?"

"He knows," Mazur said sighing. "He overheard our last conversation. Rose must've told him about you and when he heard me saying your name…"

Fuck. This wasn't good. "Is he… Is he going to tell her?" I asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"I asked him not to and he said he wouldn't, but…"

"But what?"

"Well, he didn't say literally that he wouldn't tell her," Mazur admitted. "And they're pretty close. Seeing as they're best friends."

Ugh. I really didn't need to hear how close they were. I knew they were just friends, but sometimes I wondered if something had happened between them. Rose always seemed to be smiling whenever she mentioned Christian. I knew it was probably nothing. I guess I was just a little bit jealous. It was something I'd never experienced before and I didn't really like this feeling. Not at all.

"Make sure you keep an eye on Rose," Mazur continued. "If she starts acting differently toward you… That might be a hint that Christian sold you out."

"And what am I supposed to do if he does?" I asked.

"Just don't let her run," Mazur said. "I'm pretty sure she'll try to flee when she finds out you've been lying to her."

"Great," I muttered.

"Hmm?"

"Nothing," I said quickly. "Anything else I need to know?"

"No, that's it. Good luck, Dimitri," he said sincerely.

"Thanks."

With a sigh, I got up and quietly walked out of the bathroom. Rose was thankfully still asleep. I crawled back into bed and wrapped my arms around her, gently pulling her back to my chest. I buried my face in her hair and, knowing she wouldn't hear me, I whispered, "I love you, Roza."

When I woke up the next morning, Rose wasn't in my arms anymore. It took me awhile before I realized that, though. I rolled over and stretched my arm, in search for her. My eyes shot open when I found that the bed was empty. And so was the room.

Thinking back of what Mazur had told me last night, I shot up and got out of bed. Looking around, I noticed that her bag wasn't here anymore. Why wasn't it here anymore? Did Christian call her? Did he tell her about me? Was she gone?

I walked toward the bathroom. If her makeup and toothbrush was still there, she was probably just out to get some food or fresh air. I hoped so.

I threw the door open and winced when I heard an ear-piercing scream.

"Oh my God, Dimitri!" Rose exclaimed, dropping the towel. "You startled me. I thought you were still asleep!"

I almost sagged in relief. She was still here. She never left. Thank God.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I didn't mean to barge in. I thought… I thought you'd left."

"Why would I leave?" she said frowning.

This made me think back of a very similar situation we'd been in a few weeks ago. I'd barged in on her when she'd just gotten out of the shower. I'd been afraid she'd left without saying something to me. Now we were here again: me in the doorway and her standing in the middle of the bathroom, naked. The only difference was that I didn't close my eyes and turn away this time.

"I don't know," I mumbled. "Your bag wasn't there anymore so I assumed…"

She raised her eyebrows and pointed at something in the corner. It was her bag. "I needed something from it, but I didn't want to wake you up so I took it with me to the bathroom."

"Oh. Okay," I said, suddenly feeling stupid.

She smirked and placed her hands on her hips. "Anything else?"

I gulped as I looked her over. "Umm," I stammered as she walked over toward me.

"Now, seriously, Dimitri," Rose said, stopping in front of me. "Why do you keep thinking I'd leave?"

"I don't know." I looked away for a moment. "I guess I'm afraid to wake up one day and see that you're gone. You're too good to be true," I said as I looked back at her.

I tried to keep my eyes on her face, but damn, it was hard. She wrapped her arms around my neck and stood on her tiptoes. My breath hitched when she pressed her naked form against me and I had to keep myself from throwing her on the bed in the next room to have my way with her.

"I'm not leaving," she said firmly. "I don't know why you'd think that, but I'm telling you… I'm not leaving you."

I sighed and wrapped her in my arms. More than ever, I realized I didn't deserve her. And soon, she'd realize that too.

"Roza, I…"_ Don't be a coward. Just tell her you love her. Tell her how you feel before it's too late._ "I… I'm-"

We both jumped up when her phone started ringing. She let go of me and reached for her phone, but by the time she got her hands on it, the ringing had stopped.

"I'll call him back later," she said shrugging.

"Who was it?" I asked curiously.

"Christian," she responded.

I bit my lip. "Oh."

She walked back toward me. "You were saying?"

"Um, nothing," I said quickly. Now that I'd been interrupted, I didn't have the courage to try again. "It's not important."

Luckily, she let it go.

"You know, this reminds me of something," she said grinning as she slid her hands over my chest and rested them on my shoulders. "But the last time this happened, you ran out."

"Yeah, I remember," I said, a smile tugging at my lips.

Her grin widened and my smile finally broke out. I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and she bit down on her lower lip as she looked up at me. God, she was so sexy and tempting. I wanted her so badly right now. But I couldn't.

I dragged my eyes back up to her face and leaned in to kiss her forehead. "I'll let you get ready," I murmured.

I let go of her and took a step back before turning around and leaving the bathroom, but not before seeing the surprised look on Rose's face. I surprised myself, too. I didn't think I'd be strong enough to pull away from her. I guess the guilt was stronger.

**RPOV**

After I'd dressed myself, I called Christian back.

"Hey, Chris, I'm sorry I didn't answer your call. I was busy."

"It's fine," he responded. "How are you?"

"I'm good. How are you?" I asked.

"Fine," he said curtly.

I frowned. Something sounded off about him.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, yeah. I'm fine," he reassured me. "You still in Prague?"

"Yup," I answered.

"And is Dimitri still with you?"

"Yes, of course."

"How are things going between you guys?"

"Um, I don't know. Good, I guess?" I said, wondering why Christian was suddenly so interested in Dimitri. "Although, he seems a little distant lately," I admitted.

Christian snorted. "I wonder why."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," he responded quickly.

"I don't buy that," I said. "So tell me. What did you mean?"

"Well…he just seems to have more mood swings than a woman," he said laughing.

"It's not funny," I grumbled.

"I think it is."

"Why do you hate him?" I asked. "You don't even know him."

Christian sighed. "I just want what's best for you and I have a feeling that he isn't. Maybe it's because I haven't met him in person," he added quickly before I could protest. "I don't know what you're expecting from this relationship, but… What do you think will happen when your little trip is over? Do you think he's coming back home with you? Have you guys ever talked about the future?"

"No, we haven't. Isn't it a little bit early for that?" I said frowning. "I mean, we haven't been together for that long."

"Yeah, well, if I were you I'd start asking where this whole relationship is going, because maybe he hasn't even thought one second about going back home with you and only sees you as a fling. Maybe you're just a convenience to him, one he can fuck whenever he feels like it. And when the trip is over, he is gone and you will never hear from him again."

His harsh words made my eyes burn with tears. "Well, thanks for the support!" I said angrily. "I'm sorry I bothered you."

"No, Rose, wait!" he said hastily. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just… I don't want him to hurt you, but I'm afraid he will – intentionally or not."

"Well, let me reassure you, he's nothing like you just described," I snapped. "He's a respectful and caring person."

"I hope that's true and I hope he'll do the right thing," Christian said.

Now I was confused. "Do the right thing? What are you talking about?"

"Nothing," he said. "I need to go. Be careful, Rose."

And with that said, he disconnected. I let out a frustrated sigh and got up from the bathroom floor.

"I'm ready," I announced as I walked out of the bathroom.

Dimitri looked up from where he was reading. "Took you long enough," he said, but he smiled.

"Yeah, I was talking to Christian."

Closing the book, he got up from the bed and walked over to me. "Oh, what did he have to tell?"

"Nothing much," I lied, avoiding his gaze. "He just wanted to know how I was doing."

He frowned a little. "Are you sure? You seem upset about something."

I shrugged it off. "Nah, I'm fine. Shall we leave?"

He looked at me for a long time before deciding to let it go. "Sure, Roza."

We went to visit the Prague Castle and St. Vitus Cathedral that day. It was pretty impressive. Afterwards, we just strolled around the streets in Prague in a comfortable silence. I had to admit, I was still a little upset about my conversation with Christian. What had he meant when he said he hoped Dimitri would do the right thing? And why was he questioning Dimitri's intentions? Why couldn't he believe Dimitri actually liked me?

"Roza, can I ask you something?" Dimitri suddenly said. He seemed nervous.

"Sure," I said, waiting for him to ask his question.

He stopped walking and turned toward me, his face grave. I kind of started to get nervous too, wondering what he was going to ask me. It must be something really serious if he was looking at me like that.

"So, what is it you wanted to ask me?" I asked when he didn't say anything.

He shifted on his feet nervously and looked away for a few moments before looking into my eyes again. "You and Christian seem pretty close," he said at last. "Of course you are because he's your best friend, but…" He glanced away again and took a deep breath before continuing. "But I was wondering if you…if you and him…" He frowned a little. "Did something ever happen between the two of you? Did you date each other?"

"What?" I said, giving him a funny look. "You think Christian and I have a past?"

He shrugged. "I don't know," he said, looking uncomfortable. "He seems to mean a lot to you and I… Well, I was just wondering. I didn't mean to-"

I started laughing and he looked at me, dumbfounded.

"What's so funny about that?"

"Nothing," I said, still laughing. He frowned and I sobered up. "Sorry. It's just so funny that you thought that Christian and I…" I shook my head. "Don't worry, comrade. Christian is my friend and that's all. Nothing ever happened between us. And nothing ever will," I added.

He looked relieved. "Oh. So he doesn't like you?"

"Hell no! I'm not his type at all. He likes blond girls."

"Oh. Good," Dimitri said, looking content.

I started laughing again. "Oh my God, I can't believe you thought that! Why?"

He shrugged again. "I don't know. You guys are so close so I thought something had happened between you or that maybe he liked you and, well… It's kind of hard to compete with someone who's been your best friend for years."

"Rest easy, comrade," I said. "We might have been friends for years, but I'm not attracted to him at all." I shuddered involuntarily. "Just the idea of us together is repulsive. I'm sure he feels the same way."

Dimitri raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? How can anyone be repulsed by the idea of being with you?"

I shrugged. "I think there are plenty who-"

I was caught off guard when Dimitri pulled me toward him and crushed his lips against mine. My knees grew weak and I leaned against him as our lips continued to move against each other.

"Not me," Dimitri whispered when he pulled away at last.

I tried to catch my breath. "Obviously," I said jokingly.

He grinned and put his arms around me.

"So, that's what has been bothering you?" I asked. He gave me a questioning look and I elaborated, "I don't know, you've been…well, you've been a little distant again and I thought something was wrong."

"I guess I was a little jealous," he admitted, giving me an apologetic look. "You're always so happy when you talk about him and it made me wonder…" He shrugged and gave me a small smile. "Well, it doesn't matter anymore. I know now he's just your friend. I'm sorry if I was distant. I wasn't doing it on purpose."

I smiled and stood on my tiptoes to kiss him. "It's alright, comrade. I'm just glad you told me what was bothering you."

"You're not mad at me?" he asked.

I laughed. "No, of course not."

Dimitri smiled and pressed his lips against mine. "Do you know how amazing you are, Roza?"

I flashed him a grin. "Would it be presumptuous of me to say yes?"

"Maybe a little."

"I'm just joking!" I said, indignant.

"So am I," he said grinning.

I slapped his arm playfully and he pulled me toward him.

"I doubt that," I said, crossing my arms.

Dimitri pressed his lips against my cheek. "Don't be mad, Roza."

I smiled reluctantly. "I'm not mad."

He smiled too and took my hand in his, lacing our fingers together. "Let's go, milaya."

I nodded and as we walked back to the hotel, I contemplated on telling him what I'd been thinking about lately. It hadn't been in my original plan, but now that Dimitri was here… Well, let's just say things had changed.

"So, Dimitri," I said slowly. He looked up at me and waited for me to continue. "I was thinking about what our next stop should be."

"And?" he said, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Well, I thought that we could go to St. Petersburg?" I said casually.

He stared at me for a few moments, clearly surprised. "You want to go to St. Petersburg?"

I nodded. "I thought it would be cool," I said with a shrug. "You could show me around since you've probably been there a dozen times."

He grinned. "Actually, I've only been there about three times, but sure, I'd love to show you St. Petersburg."

I smiled. "Great."

We continued walking in silence for a few moments until Dimitri said, "Why exactly do you want to visit St. Petersburg?"

"Hmm. I don't know, but I think you might have something to do with that," I said with a wink.

He pulled me to his chest and kissed the top of my head. "Oh, Roza," he said sighing.

I didn't know why, but hearing him sigh my name made me blush furiously. I quickly buried my face in his chest so he wouldn't see. I peeked up at him and he smiled down at me affectionately.

And in that moment, I realized Christian was wrong. There was no way he could be faking his feelings for me, there was no way he just saw me as an easy lay, eager to get rid of me as soon as this trip was over. I didn't believe that.

But that didn't mean that I didn't wonder what would happen after this trip? Where would he be going? Back to America or would he go home to his family? Would I ever see him again?

I didn't really want to think about this. Not yet. It just made me feel sad. Right now, I just wanted to enjoy my time with him. Because all good things had to end someday, right? So why not enjoy what you have right now?

* * *

**Next chapter there will be a conversation between Dimitri and Christian and there might be a lemon, like I mentioned earlier - unless you don't want one. Just tell me ;) **

**Next week I'm starting with my exams, so I'm going to have to study a lot and I still have classes to go to, so I won't be able to update as much (I'm so sorry!). But I'll make sure I'll update at least once a week. **

**Hope you have a nice weekend and thanks again for the people who nominated my stories! It means a lot to me :D**


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